EEG Based Detection of Alcoholics

The short term and long term effects of alcohol on various organs of the body, especially on the human brain is well established by numerous studies. Invasive methods such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and non invasive imaging techniques such as Computed Tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), and functional MRI activated electro-encephalogram (EEG) have been used to study the changes in EEG activity due to alcoholism. Even with the advent of neuro imaging techniques, EEG happens to be an important tool for brain study providing a non- invasive and cost effective method to detect the effects of alcohol on the human brain. This paper discusses the harmful effects of alcohol on different organs of the body. The advances in the development of EEG signal processing algorithms over the past decade for alcoholic detection are reviewed and their limitations are reported. Further the use of EEG for mass screening of alcoholics and biometric application is discussed in detail.