Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42791880›Full record

ArticleBioengineering (Basel, Switzerland)2026

Online Signal-to-Noise Management for Evoked Potentials-Assessing and Explaining Response Quality.

Gerald Fischer, Maria E Holzknecht, Jens Haueisen, Daniel Baumgarten, Markus Kofler

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Gerald FischerInstitute of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering, UMIT TIROL-Private University for Health Sciences and Health Technology, Eduard Wallnoefer Zentrum 1, 6060 Hall in Tirol, Austria.ORCID 0000-0002-7292-2333
Maria E HolzknechtDepartment of Neurology, Hochzirl Hospital, 6170 Zirl, Austria.ORCID 0009-0008-1773-2407
Jens HaueisenInstitute of Biomedical Engineering and Informatics, Technische Universität Ilmenau, Gustav-Kirchhoff Str., 98693 Ilmenau, Germany.ORCID 0000-0003-3871-2890
Daniel BaumgartenDepartment of Mechatronics, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstraße, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria.ORCID 0000-0001-6109-3368
Markus KoflerDepartment of Neurology, Hochzirl Hospital, 6170 Zirl, Austria.ORCID 0000-0002-2962-0903

Funding

Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

(1) Background: Evoked potentials (EPs) are an elegant, non-invasive, and reliable technique for assessing the functional integrity of neural pathways. They are, however, often limited by the difficulty and time needed to consistently distinguish signal from noise. (2) Methods: We have recently proposed a novel technique based on spectral domain evoked-to-background ratio (EBR) that enables fast data acquisition with online feedback about actual signal quality utilizing state of the art analog-to-digital conversion. Furthermore, we have developed a novel model-based signal-to-noise management concept allowing for suppression of biological and technical interference (swallowing, stimulation artifacts, electropolarization, and powerline potentials) and for online assessment of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for EPs. In this work, we experimentally confirmed this concept in ten healthy volunteers by investigating cortical EPs and high-frequency oscillations (HFOs) following median nerve stimulation. (3) Results: Both mathematical model and human data demonstrate that spectral target-band EBR governs the progress in SNR with increasing sweep count. For cortical EPs, SNR exceeded 10 dB beyond 90 averages in all participants. An SNR > 20 dB documented excellent signal quality and reproducibility. For HFOs, the SNR shifted to lower values by 12 dB, displaying pronounced individual variation, however, with smaller variation of HFO-band background activity (1.9 vs. 7.6 dB between the 25% and 75% percentile). Thus, individual HFO responses are more important for actual signal extraction compared to background activity. In subjects displaying a high HFO amplitude, reproducibility was confirmed for less than 1000 sweeps. (4) Conclusions: The present investigations confirm that individual EBR is the major factor defining SNR. Background noise can be reduced to a negligible level. Online assessment of background activity will allow for the most accurate moment-to-moment visualization of raw signal quality. This will facilitate termination of the data acquisition and may be based on quantified signal quality rather than predefined sweep count.

Indexed as

electroencephalographyhigh-frequency oscillationsreal-time signal processingsignal-to-noise ratiosomatosensory evoked potentialswaveform averaging

Identifiers

PMID42791880
PMCPMC13603548

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.