Recurrent Vestibulopathy: Comparison of Vestibular Test Results with Ménière's Disease and Vestibular Migraine.

INTRODUCTION: Recurrent and episodic vestibular symptoms not fulfilling criteria for known episodic vestibular syndromes are named as recurrent vestibulopathy (RV). We aimed to compare the vestibular test results of RV patients with vestibular migraine (VM) and Ménière's disease (MD).

METHODS: Twenty patients with MD, 20 patients with VM, 18 patients with RV, and 20 healthy volunteers (HC) were evaluated. Pure-tone hearing thresholds (PTHTs), video head impulse test (vHIT), functional head impulse test (fHIT), and cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMPs) were studied.

RESULTS: PTHT of the MD-affected ears were significantly high, and cVEMP-corrected amplitudes were low when compared with the VM, RV, and HC (p < 0.001 for all). Amplitude asymmetry ratio was significantly high in MD-affected ears when compared with the HC (p = 0.014), VM (p = 0.038), and RV (p = 0.045). VEMP latencies and lateral canal vHIT gain were not different between groups (p > 0.05). The percentage of correctly identified optotypes on fHIT of the MD (p > 0.001), VM (p = 0.004), and RV (p = 0.001) patients were low in comparison with the HC.

CONCLUSION: Apart from hearing loss, low cVEMP amplitudes on the affected side were the main feature in MD differentiating it from VM and RV. Vestibular test results of patients with RV and VM were similar. Low fHIT results in all groups indicate a functional deficit in gaze stabilization. Disabling vertigo attacks disturbing attention may be the cause of this functional impairment. MD, VM, and RV may be parts of a broad-spectrum disorder, RV patients representing milder forms not associated with cochlear or migrainous features.