Selective Otolithic and Semicircular Canal Dysfunction: Insights from VEMP and vHIT

/Objectives: Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMPs) and the video head impulse test (vHIT) enable receptor-specific assessment of otolithic organs and semicircular canals. Their increasing use has revealed selective or apparently isolated vestibular abnormalities, although the clinical significance of these findings remains uncertain....

Combining VEMP and vHIT testing enables receptor-specific profiling of vestibular dysfunction; clinicians with access to both tools should consider using them together when precise lesion localisation is needed for diagnosis or monitoring.

Demonstrating receptor-specific diagnostic utility of VEMP and vHIT together advances the case for comprehensive multimodal vestibular test batteries in routine clinical practice.

1. 01VEMPs assess otolith organ (saccule/utricle) function; vHIT assesses semicircular canal function separately.
2. 02Patients with selective otolithic dysfunction showed abnormal VEMPs but intact vHIT, and vice versa.
3. 03Combined use of VEMP and vHIT enables precise lesion localisation within the vestibular system.
4. 04Receptor-specific profiling may improve differential diagnosis of vestibular disorders.
5. 05Findings support multimodal vestibular testing over single-test approaches.

PMID

42194905

DOI

10.3390/jcm15103944.

Journal

Journal of Clinical Medicine

Publication type

research_article

Evidence level

4

Population

Patients with suspected or confirmed vestibular dysfunction undergoing VEMP and vHIT testing

Intervention

Combined VEMP and vHIT assessment of vestibular end-organ function