[The activity of motor units of the musculus splenius capitis in pheripheral vestibular lesions (author's transl)].

The activity of single motor units of the splenius-capitis muscle of healthy human subjects and patients with unilateral vestibular lesions was recorded by means of microelectrodes. The major part of these units reacted to vestibular stimulation in the same way as primary and secondary vestibular neurones of other vertebrates. The reactions of these units to trapezoidale stimuli is identical to that of vestibular neurones. An angular acceleration of more than 0.6 degrees/s2 is for these units a stimulus which is above threshold, this too corresponds to findings in the vestibular nerve. In patients with unilateral vestibular lesions the threshold for rotatory stimuli is markedly increased on the side of the lesion, whereas the threshold on the other side remains constant. This method is very sensitive and vestibular lesions can be detected which cannot be seen using the common technics for vestibular examination.