Author name: Primary Care Diagnostics

AWV  Fall Prevention

Prevent Falls with an VAT® ENGplus™ Test

By age 60, more than half of all Americans have experienced an inner ear problem. A new study conducted at Johns Hopkins shows that adults over age 40 are 12 times more likely to have a serious fall because of an inner ear problem. You can prevent falls in your patient, if you know the cause, unfortunately, finding those causes often difficult.

Dr. Dennis O’Leary, a neurophysiologist at the University of Southern California School of Medicine, developed the VAT-ENGPlus System –  a combination of simple to use tests that evaluate the central and peripheral vestibular systems. Your technician or medical assistant can perform these tests in less than 20 minutes with immediate results and interpretation. That VAT-ENGPlus System tests the four ocular motor pathways responsible for maintaining balance, psychotic, smooth pursuit optogenetic, and the vestibular ocular reflex commonly called the vo are problems with any of these systems can cause your patient to feel off balance. The first segment of tests evaluates the central vestibular nervous system. A lightweight head strap with five electrodes monitors the head and emotions, the patient follows a moving target on the wall. During the second test, the patient moves his eyes in a rapid single movement as the light jumps back and forth at random intervals for 20 seconds. Test Results show the speed, accuracy, and delay of eye movements compared to the target. During the smooth pursuit test, the light moves continuously test results show whether the eyes kept up lagged behind, or jumped ahead. green and black stripes fill the visual field during the optogenetic test. As your patient watches each stripe. A reflexive II movement called a stagnant is generated and recorded. The test determines whether the speed of the eye movement is symmetric between the right and left sides. abnormalities within the psychotic smooth pursuit or optogenetic systems are consistent with central nervous system pathology. The vestibular autorotation test commonly called the bat is used to test the VR. The VR is the ocular motor system controlled by the inner ear that signals the eyes to move in exactly the opposite direction of the head during everyday activities such as turning, walking, or bending over. In the event of a mismatch, dizziness occurs.

During the VAT, the patient is asked to move her head back and forth to a tone played through the computer while following a target on the wall. As the tone gets faster, the patient moves her head faster. Side to side head motions test the horizontal canal at the inner ear while up and down motion to evaluate the vertical canal. Results compare the timing distance and speed of the eye and head movements. Abnormal results suggest peripheral vestibular pathology.

Dizziness is a frightening experience. You are your patients’ first and best resource to help join the growing number of physicians that are helping their patients stay on their feet while adding an additional source of revenue to their practice.

Learn more about the VAT-ENGPlus System here.