Comparison of Video Head Impulse Test in the Posterior Semicircular Canal Plane and Cervical Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potential in Patients With Vestibular Neuritis.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the results of cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP) and video head impulse test (p-vHIT) of posterior semicircular canal considered tools of inferior vestibular nerve function in vestibular neuritis.

STUDY DESIGN

Prospective cohort study.

SETTING

Tertiary otology clinic.

PATIENTS AND INTERVENTIONS

Seventy-nine patients with vestibular neuritis participated in this study. We analyzed the interaural amplitude difference in cVEMP with a positive rate of p-vHIT according to gain and corrective saccade in the study population.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

To evaluate the concordance rate of both tests, we analyzed Fleiss' Kappa value inter-test agreement of cVEMP with p-vHIT. Finally, we performed detailed analysis of the bilaterally absent response on cVEMP according to the p-vHIT results.

RESULTS

The inter-test agreement between cVEMP and p-vHIT was 69.8% as we also considered the lesion side. This result indicated a statistically fair to good agreement in both tests. In mostly elderly patients with a bilaterally absent response (11 patients) on cVEMP, as a result of vHIT, nine patients with a bilaterally negative response on p-vHIT showed only canal paresis. Two patients showed canal paresis and a unilaterally positive response on p-vHIT.

CONCLUSIONS

Inter-test agreement between cVEMP and p-vHIT assessed in vestibular neuritis was relatively lower than we had predicted. Probably, p-vHIT can provide additional information on the differential diagnosis of dysfunction of the inferior vestibular nerve which is composed of the saccular nerve and the posterior ampullary nerve.