Skull Vibration Induced Nystagmus Test: Correlations with Semicircular Canal and Otolith Asymmetries

Abstract

Background: To establish in patients with peripheral vestibular disorders relations between skull vibration-induced nystagmus (SVIN) different components (horizontal, vertical, torsional) and the results of different structurally related vestibular tests. Methods: SVIN test, canal vestibular test (CVT: caloric test + video head impulse test: VHIT), otolithic vestibular test (OVT: ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potential oVEMP + cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential cVEMP) performed on the same day in 52 patients with peripheral vestibular diseases (age p = 0.005) and correlated with alterations of lateral-VHIT (p p = 0.002) and oVEMP (p = 0.006). SVIN-SPV vertical component was correlated with the anterior-VHIT and oVEMP alterations (p = 0.007; p = 0.017, respectively). SVIN-SPV torsional component was correlated with the anterior-VHIT positivity (p = 0.017). SVIN was the only positive test for 10% of patients (83% of Group-VNT). Conclusion: SVIN-SPV analysis in dizzy patients shows significant correlation to both CVT and OVT. SVIN horizontal component is mainly relevant to both vestibular tests exploring lateral canal and utricle responses. SVIN-SPV is significantly higher in patients with combined canal and otolith lesions. In some patients with dizziness, SVIN may be the only positive test.

Keywords

• skull vibration induced nystagmus
• dizziness
• unilateral vestibular loss
• vestibular functional tests