Vestibular Reflexes Evoked By Brief Lateral Head Acclerations: A New Measure Of Utricular Function
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$225,357.00
Summary
The vestibular (balance) organs are difficult to investigate as they lie deep within bone. Disease of these organs may cause severe vertigo, imbalance and difficulty with vision. This project attempts to build on earlier developments in my laboratory and thereby improve understanding and diagnosis of these disorders. This grant relates to a new form of stimulation which may allow simple assessment of an important part of the vestibular apapratus, the utricle.
New Methods And Applications Of Vestibular Electrophysiology In Humans.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$165,509.00
Summary
This project consists of a series of experiments and investigations using new methods to test the vestibular apparatus (balance organs). These receptors lie deep within the skull in the inner ear and disease of them can cause dizziness (vertigo) and unsteadiness. Due to their location, investigation of the function of these receptors has been difficult. With NH and MRC support, I have developed two new methods of vestibular assessment. These are now being applied both here and overseas. Perhaps ....This project consists of a series of experiments and investigations using new methods to test the vestibular apparatus (balance organs). These receptors lie deep within the skull in the inner ear and disease of them can cause dizziness (vertigo) and unsteadiness. Due to their location, investigation of the function of these receptors has been difficult. With NH and MRC support, I have developed two new methods of vestibular assessment. These are now being applied both here and overseas. Perhaps the clearest example of how these new techniques have improved current diagnostic methods is the Tullio phenomenon, in which patients feel dizzy in response to loud sounds. My colleagues and I have shown that these patients always have a characteristic abnormality to click activation of the inner ear, one of the tests that I developed. It is likely to have a very important role in distiguishing between patients with Xray abnormalities predisposing to this condition and those who actually have the full-blown syndrome, so that the correct treatment is offered. This proposal seeks to build on the previous successful one. In it, I propose further new methods of investigating the vestibular apparatus, which avoid some of the preconditions necessary for the present tests and would allow more widespread application of them. Furthermore, additional specific disease states which are characterised by unsteadiness (ataxia) will be assessed with these new methods to determine whether abnormal vestibular reflexes are partly responsible for the loss of balance. In one of the conditions to be investigated, gentamicin-induced vestibular impairment, there is the possibility in the future of applying these techniques to detect changes early, at a time when they are potentially reversible.Read moreRead less
Assessment Of Vestibular Function And Balance In Humans
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$205,500.00
Summary
This proposal focuses upon the function of the vestibular apparatus and the related problem of impaired balance. The vestibular apparatus contains receptors which help us to maintain balance. Their clinical assessment is difficult because they are small and lie deep within the skull. With previous NH and MRC support, I have been able to develop a series of new tests to assess the function of the vestibular apparatus and these are having significant clincal impact. Amongst the findings has been a ....This proposal focuses upon the function of the vestibular apparatus and the related problem of impaired balance. The vestibular apparatus contains receptors which help us to maintain balance. Their clinical assessment is difficult because they are small and lie deep within the skull. With previous NH and MRC support, I have been able to develop a series of new tests to assess the function of the vestibular apparatus and these are having significant clincal impact. Amongst the findings has been a clear demonstration that vestibular function declines with age, starting relatively early. This proposal builds upon the findings of the previous application. Two main types of investigations are planned. In one a new technique of activating the vestibular apparatus (localised skull vibration) will be used to study the brain areas that receive its signals (evoked potentials). This will be the first time that it has been possible to study the connections between the balance organs and the cortex of the brain in intact humans. I will apply the technique to patients with disturbed vestibular function to improve our knowledge of how the brain adapts to disease of these organs. In the second part of this study, a series of recordings will be done measuring sway under a variety of conditions both in normal volunteers and in patients with some common disease states affecting balance. This should reveal new information about both the factors that affect normal balance function and why balance is disturbed in these diseases.Read moreRead less