title: Oculomotor evaluation in patients with peripheral vestibular dysfunction.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess whether or not the parameters of fixed and randomized saccadic movements, of pendular tracking and of optokinetic nystagmus in the digital vectonystagmography may show abnormalities in patients with possible diagnosis of peripheral vestibular dysfunction.
  
  
  METHODS
  60 patients with dizziness of peripheral vestibular origin, from 12 to 82 years of age, males and females, were evaluated in the Universidade Federal de São Paulo. Ocular movement parameter findings were compared to a normal pattern.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fixed saccadic movements were altered in 100% of the cases as to latency, and in 35.0% of the cases as to speed; the randomized saccadic movements were altered in 100% of the cases as to latency, in 78.3% as to precision, and in 1.7% as to speed; the pendular tracking showed a gain alteration in the frequencies of 0.1 Hz in 15% of the cases, 0.2 Hz in 21.7%, and 0.4 Hz in 13.3%; the optokinetic nystagmus showed an alteration of the angular speed in the slow component in 1.7% of the cases, and in gain in 5.0%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Fixed saccadic movement latency and speed, randomized saccadic movement latency, precision and speed, pendular tracking gain, slow component angular speed, and optokinetic nystagmus gain in the digital vectonystagmography may show abnormalities in patients with possible diagnosis of peripheral vestibular dysfunction.
authors.affiliation: Sao Paulo Federal University, Paulista School of Medicine, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vanessa Costa
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Tuma
authors.forename: Cristina Freitas
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Ganança
authors.forename: Maurício Malavasi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Ganança
authors.forename: Heloisa Helena
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Caovilla
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002648:Child; D004584:Electronystagmography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017120:Nystagmus, Optokinetic / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time; D015837:Vestibular Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*