Multimodal Brain Monitoring in Congenital Cardiac Surgery: The Importanceof Processed Electroencephalogram Monitor, NeuroSENSE, in Addition to Cerebral Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

THERE IS increasing concern about the neurologic outcome of children undergoing congenital cardiac surgery. In past years, numerous small studies have shown the importance of cerebral near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in managing neonates and children during cardiac surgery. Few reports have been published questioning the validity of cerebral NIRS data. It can be speculated that negative results do not reach publication easily. Therefore, results of studies evaluating cerebral NIRS in congenital cardiac surgery are prone to publication bias, which certainly is not unique to this technology.