TY - JOUR T1 - A P300-based brain-computer interface for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. JF - Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology Y1 - 2008 A1 - Nijboer, F. A1 - Sellers, E. W. A1 - Mellinger, J. A1 - Jordan, M. A. A1 - Matuz, T. A1 - Adrian Furdea A1 - S Halder A1 - Mochty, U. A1 - Krusienski, D. J. A1 - Theresa M Vaughan A1 - Jonathan Wolpaw A1 - Niels Birbaumer A1 - Kübler, A. KW - Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis KW - brain-computer interface KW - electroencephalogram KW - event-related potentials KW - P300 KW - Rehabilitation AB - OBJECTIVE: The current study evaluates the efficacy of a P300-based brain-computer interface (BCI) communication device for individuals with advanced ALS. METHODS: Participants attended to one cell of a N x N matrix while the N rows and N columns flashed randomly. Each cell of the matrix contained one character. Every flash of an attended character served as a rare event in an oddball sequence and elicited a P300 response. Classification coefficients derived using a stepwise linear discriminant function were applied to the data after each set of flashes. The character receiving the highest discriminant score was presented as feedback. RESULTS: In Phase I, six participants used a 6 x 6 matrix on 12 separate days with a mean rate of 1.2 selections/min and mean online and offline accuracies of 62% and 82%, respectively. In Phase II, four participants used either a 6 x 6 or a 7 x 7 matrix to produce novel and spontaneous statements with a mean online rate of 2.1 selections/min and online accuracy of 79%. The amplitude and latency of the P300 remained stable over 40 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: Participants could communicate with the P300-based BCI and performance was stable over many months. SIGNIFICANCE: BCIs could provide an alternative communication and control technology in the daily lives of people severely disabled by ALS. VL - 119 UR - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18571984 ER -