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In the human electroencephalogram (EEG), oscillatory power peaks co-exist with non-oscillatory, aperiodic activity. Although EEG analysis has traditionally focused exclusively on oscillatory power, recent investigations have shown that the aperiodic EEG component can distinguish conscious wakefulness from sleep and anesthetic-induced unconsciousness (Lendner et al. 2020). This study investigates the aperiodic EEG component of individuals in a disorder of consciousness (DOC), and how it changes in response to exposure to anesthesia. High-density EEG was recorded from 43 individuals in a DOC. To measure the brain’s reaction to global perturbation, a subset of n = 16 were also exposed to a targeted infusion of propofol anesthesia. The aperiodic component was defined by the spectral slope and offset in the 1-45 Hz and 30-45 Hz range of the power spectral density. Brain network criticality and complexity were estimated using the pair correlation function (PCF) and Lempel-Ziv complexity, respectively. The level of responsiveness of all individuals in DOC was assessed using the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R). Recovery of consciousness was assessed three months post-EEG. At baseline, the EEG aperiodic component was more strongly correlated to the participants’ level of consciousness than the oscillatory component. Anesthesia caused a steepening of the spectral slope across participants. Importantly, the change in spectral slope positively correlated with the individual participant’s level of responsiveness. The spectral slope during exposure to anesthesia contained prognostic value for individuals with DOC. The anesthetic-induced change in aperiodic EEG was accompanied by loss of information-richness and a reduction in network criticality. The aperiodic EEG component in individuals with DOC has been historically neglected; this research highlights the importance of considering this measure for future research investigating brain mechanisms underlying consciousness.Significance StatementThe analysis of human EEG has traditionally focused on oscillatory power, which is characterized by peaks above a broadband, aperiodic component in the EEG power spectral density. This study is the first to demonstrate the value of the aperiodic EEG component and specifically, its reaction to propofol anesthesia for assessing individual’s level of, and capacity for, consciousness. Our results demonstrates that the pharmacological induced change in the aperiodic component accompanies the brain’s loss of network criticality and complexity. Most importantly, the magnitude of brain response to propofol anesthesia relies on an individual’s pre-anesthetic level of consciousness. Whereas the aperiodic EEG component has been historically neglected; this research highlights the necessity of considering this measure for future research that seeks to understand the neurophysiological underpinnings of consciousness.