vestibular Flashcards
semicircular canals
fluid filled loops which detect angular acceleration and head rotation
how many semicircular canals are there?
3 (anterior, posterior, horizontal)
otoliths
detect translation, linear acceleration, and head position relative to gravity
what are the two otoliths?
utricle and saccule
saccule detects _______ translation and utricle detects ______ translation
vertical
horizontal
(katie remembers by the horizontal cross on the t in utricle)
stereocilia
mechanosensing organelles of hair cells
stereocilia are oriented in rows of ___ heights to the tallest _______
ascending kinocilium
as you turn your head to the right, your ______ horizontal canal is excited and the _______ horizontal canal is inhibited
right
left
what is the resting firing rate of hair cells
90 spikes per sec
depolarization occurs with deflection _____ the kinocilium
toward
push pull mechanism of canals
as one canal increases firing rate and depolarizes, its pair decreases its firing rate and hyperpolarizes
vestibulo-ocular reflex is driven by the…
semicircular canals
what does the VOR do?
generates eye movement to match head movement to allow clear vision during head motion
how many vestibular nuclei are there?
four (superior, medial, lateral, and inferior)
the vestibular nuclei connect to the ______
cerebellum
what system do humans typically rely on for posture control in a stable, well-lit environment
somatosensory
vertigo
the sensation of movement
dizziness
can be used to describe anything from feeling faint, lightheaded, or unsteady
T or F: vertigo and dizziness are diagnoses
F
T or F: dizziness is one of the most common reasons adults visit their doctor
T
3 important components of subjective history for dizziness
1 - tempo: how long has it been going on, duration of spells?
2 - symptoms: lightheadedness, rocking, motion sickness, floating, vertigo?
3 - circumstances - spontaneous, with eye movement, after sitting up?
what are some red flags that you may see with dizziness?
- cranial nerve involvement
- diplopia, dysphagia, dysarthria, dysmetria
- asymmetric weakness
- numbness
- clonus
- severe HA
- vertical nystagmus w/o torsion
- spontaneous nystagmus in room light after two weeks
nystagmus
repetitive to and fro movement of the eyes that are initiated by slow phases
3 ways to induce physiologic nystagmus
1 - vestibular (rotational)
2 - visually induced
3 - extreme end point
2 types of pathologic nystagmus
spontaneous and positional