To date, continuous electroencephalograms (cEEG) have been monitored and analysed visually, a process that requires considerable expertise and time. Sonification – the representation of data through sound – offers promising approaches that harness the human ear’s ability to process temporal and rhythmic patterns.

The SonNEEM project develops sonification tools specifically tailored to intensive care units and the needs of intensive care staff. The focus is on AI-assisted detection and monitoring of burst-suppression and epileptiform patterns in EEG data from critically ill patients. The sonifications will be carefully integrated with other sources of information, such as visual monitors, and existing workflows.

The project is an interdisciplinary collaboration between the University of Zurich, the Institutes for Computer Music and Sound Technology and Design Research at the Zurich University of the Arts, and two practice partners, the Neurointensive Care Unit at the University Hospital Zurich and the Swiss Epilepsy Center at the Klinik Lengg.