[Value of EEG monitoring in intensive care patients in plastic surgery--indications and experiences].

EEG monitoring can be performed at the patients' bedside and it is a valuable support in therapeutic decision making providing unique information about the functional state of the brain. Due to newer technical developments, EEG monitoring can be conducted rather easily. In this article, indications for EEG monitoring in plastic surgical patients are presented: controlling the level of sedation, use in states of increased intracranial pressure, screening the cerebral state in comatose patients, diagnosis and therapy of epileptic seizures, and the search for circumscribed cerebral abnormalities. Furthermore, practical experience with the use of the new EEG monitor Narcotrend, which is provided with an automatic EEG classification, is described.