Abstract

Background
Sex influences is important to understand behavioral manifestations in a large number of neuropsychiatric disorders. We found electrophysiological differences specifically related to the influence of sex on psychopathic traits.
Methods
The resting electroencephalography (EEG) activity and low-resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (LORETA) for the EEG spectral bands were evaluated in 38 teenagers with conduct disorder (CD). The 25 male and 13 female subjects had psychopathic traits as diagnosed using the Antisocial Process Screening Device. All of the included adolescents were assessed using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) criteria. The visually inspected EEG characteristics and the use of frequency-domain quantitative analysis techniques are described.
Results
Quantitative EEG (QEEG) analysis showed that the slow-wave activities in the right frontal and left central regions were higher and the alpha-band powers in the left central and bitemporal regions were lower in the male than the female psychopathic traits group. The current source density showed increases in paralimbic areas at 2.73 Hz and decreases in the frontoparietal area at 9.37 Hz in male psychopathics relative to female psychopathics.
Conclusions
These findings indicate that QEEG analysis and techniques of source localization can reveal sex differences in brain electrical activity between teenagers with CD and psychopathic traits that are not obvious in visual inspections.

• Key words: Electroencephalogram; Conduct disorder; Sex