VNG: Oculomotor + Positional Flashcards
What is the purpose of VNG?
- Provides objective data to characterize hypo-vestibular function
- Helps diagnoise vestibular disorders
- Can provide useful, pathway-specific info to ENT/PCP/PT for vestibular rehabilitation purposes
Before starting VNG testing, what’t the first thing you should do and why?
Exam the eyes
* Helps to differentiate between nystagmus and noise during test
* Reveal if eye movements are conjugate so you can determine if you need to do mono vs binocular recording
What makes up the VNG Test Battery?
- Ocuolomoter Testing: Spontaneous Gaze, Saccade, Smooth pursuit, OPK/OKN
- Positional & Positioning Testing: Static & Dynamic
- Caloric Stimulation: Warm and Cool air or Water Irrigations
What are the three kinds of Nystagmus & how are they named?
- Horizontal
- Vertical
- Rotary
They are describes by the fast phase, strength (d/s), and duration
What is consider normal results for the Gaze test? What is being tested?
One’s ability to fixate on one spot
Normal results is when no nystagmus is present
State the deficiencies for moderate deviations for gaze evoked nystagmus
- Persistent gaze evoked nystagmus is associated with deficiency in the neural integrator
- Hortizontal Gaze = Nucleus Prepositus Hypoglossi
- Vertical Gaze = Interdtitial Nucleus of Cajal
What is the role of the neural integrator?
Generates the constant firing rate needed to hold the eye in an eccentric posture
For Gaze, what happens if there’s lesions of the Cerebellum?
It can produce gaze-evoked nystagmus in any direction
What would you expect if there’s a peripheral problem?
Spontaneous Nystagmus
What is Alexander’s Law
The amplitude of nystagmus is the strongest when the gaze moves in the direction of the fast phase
What is Peripheral Vestibular Nystagmus?
Is occurs from dysfunction of one or more of the SCCs or the peripheral nervous system
What are characteristics of Peripheral Vestibular Nystagmus?
- Shows mixture of horizontal and torsional but never vertical
- Suppressed by fixation
- Shows normal or low VOR gain but not high VOR gain
- There is no associated abnormality in pursuits and saccades
What is Central Vestibular Nystagmus?
Occurs from dysfunction in the brainstem or cerebellar regions serving the VOR
What are characteristics of Central Vestibular Nystagmus?
- Could display vertical, horizontal, or torsional components
- Not well suppressed by fixation and gets stronger when covered
- Show abnormally high VOR gain or low or normal VOR
- Has associated smooth pursuit abnormality
What is the purpose of saccades? Where are the targets presented? And what are being quantified?
Looks at quick eye movement to find or refocus a target on the fovea of the eye
- Target could be found n the left and right lateral positions
- Quantifies eye peak velocity, accuracy, and latency