title: A clinical test of otolith function: static ocular counterroll with passive head tilt.
abstract: When roll-tilted around the naso-occipital axis, humans exhibit compensatory torsional rotation of the eyes in the opposite direction owing to the torsional vestibulo-ocular reflex. In the static condition (sustained head roll), the utricles act as responsible sensors for 'static ocular counterroll'. Contributions of cervico-ocular reflexes remain unknown. To find an easy, clinically useful test of utricular function, we induced ocular counterroll in 10 healthy study participants (two men, mean age 27+/-2 years) under three stimulation conditions (active/passive head tilt and passive whole body tilt in roll plane), used three-dimensional video-oculography to measure it, and compared values. Active head-tilt-induced ocular counterroll varied most and was thus less reliable than passive head and body tilt-induced ocular counterroll. Utricular function can thus be tested simply by measuring passive head tilt with video-oculography.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Klinikum Grosshadern, Munich, Germany. vzingler@med.uni-muenchen.de
authors.forename: Vera C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Zingler
authors.forename: Dmytro
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kryvoshey
authors.forename: Erich
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Glasauer
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Brandt
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Strupp
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D019416:Head Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009885:Ophthalmology / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D010037:Otolithic Membrane / Q000502:physiology*; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology; D012399:Rotation; D015348:Vision, Binocular