Appropriateness of Electroencephalographic Referrals in a Tertiary Care Psychiatric Hospital: Retrospective Study from Oman

Objective: To investigate whether electroencephalogram (EEG) requests at a psychiatric tertiary care center in urban Oman are being made according to guidelines for best practice. Methods: This study was carried out at a psychiatry tertiary care hospital in Muscat providing the most comprehensive psychiatric service in the country. Cases were examined retrospectively for11months from January to December 2018. Relevant information was recorded on a proforma prepared for this study. The request was judged as being appropriate or otherwise according to international best practice. Results: During the study period, 421 patients were referred to the EEG laboratory. Approximately 71% of them were males and 29% were females. Approximately 94% of EEG results were deemed as being normal. In terms of appropriateness of requesting EEG, only 5% of the requests were considered 'appropriate' according to the guidelines. The factors associated with the appropriateness of requests included age, abnormality in EEG, and the reason given for the request. Conclusions: The majority of EEG referrals were not being made per guidelines. More studies are needed to uncover and examine the factors contributing to the overprescription of EEG among physicians in Oman. Educating the physicians on the judicious use of EEG is therefore warranted.