title: Ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials induced by air-conducted sound in patients with acute brainstem lesions.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The ocular vestibular-evoked myogenic potential (oVEMP), a recently documented otolith-ocular reflex, is considered to reflect the central projections of the primary otolithic afferent fibers to the oculomotor nuclei. The aim of our study is to define air-conducted sound oVEMP abnormality in patients with acute brainstem lesions and to determine the brainstem structures involved in the generation of oVEMPs.
  
  
  METHODS
  In response to air-conducted tone burst sounds (ACS), oVEMP was measured in 52 patients with acute brainstem lesions. Individualized brainstem lesions were analyzed by means of MRI-based voxel-wise lesion-behavior mapping, and the probabilistic lesion maps were constructed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  More than half (n=28, 53.8%) of the patients with acute brainstem lesions showed abnormal oVEMP in response to ACS. The majority of patients with abnormal oVEMPs had lesions in the dorsomedial brainstem that contains the medial longitudinal fasciculus (MLF), the crossed ventral tegmental tract (CVTT), and the oculomotor nuclei and nerves.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MLF, CVTT, and the oculomotor nuclei and nerves appear to be responsible for otolith-ocular responses in the brainstem.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Complemented to cervical VEMP for the uncrossed otolith-spinal function, oVEMP to ACS may be applied to evaluate the crossed otolith-ocular function in central vestibulopathies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Chonbuk National University School of Medicine, Jeonju, South Korea. ohsun@jbnu.ac.kr
authors.forename: Sun-Young
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Ji Soo
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jong-Min
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Byoung-Soo
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Seung-Bae
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Ki-Chang
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Kwak
authors.forename: Chanmi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Seul-Ki
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: Tae-Woo
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001844:Bone Conduction / Q000502:physiology; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D001933:Brain Stem / Q000502:physiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D020526:Brain Stem Infarctions / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008526:Medulla Oblongata / Q000503:physiopathology; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000503:physiopathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000502:physiology; D009802:Oculomotor Nerve / Q000502:physiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D010037:Otolithic Membrane / Q000502:physiology*; D011149:Pons / Q000503:physiopathology; D012027:Reflex, Vestibulo-Ocular / Q000502:physiology*; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology; D020217:Vertebral Artery Dissection / Q000503:physiopathology; D058585:Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials / Q000502:physiology*