Vestibular disorders are the most common cause of dizziness and vertigo… and are usually treatable. The vestibular organ is a part of the inner ear (cochlea). The vestibular organ is a motion sensor that can detect angular motion and linear motion. When angular motion is detected in the normal vestibular system, there is an equal and opposite eye reflex to stabilize the visual field when the head or body is moving. When this reflex is impaired, the person is unsteady and may experience vertigo: the sensation of spinning when the body is not spinning. This sensation can be triggered in a person with a normal vestibular system by spinning around and then abruptly stopping because it takes a few seconds for the fluid in the vestibular organ to stop moving. When this sensation occurs spontaneously or with positional changes, this is called vertigo. Vertigo does not occur spontaneously in a normal vestibular system. 

A vestibular evaluation checks to make sure that the left and right vestibular systems are working properly. We also check voluntary eye movements (pursuit, saccades, optokinetic, and gaze stabilization) to make sure those central nervous system functions are working properly…using the most advanced equipment available. The good news is that mostperipheral  vestibular conditions are treatable and when they are we will recommend the appropriate treatment…or provide immediate treatment (depending on the diagnosis).

The most accurate Vestibular Evaluation uses 4-channel infra-red video recordings of reflexive and voluntary eye movement as pictured here with our equipment .