International Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery | November 2021 | Vol 7 | Issue 11 Page 1724 International Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery Sirige S et al. Int J Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2021 Nov;7(11):1724-1728 http://www.ijorl.com pISSN 2454-5929 | eISSN 2454-5937 Original Research Article Usefulness of vestibular evoked myogenic potentials in diagnosis of peripheral vestibular disorders Sreelatha Sirige, S. Rajesh Kumar*, V. Krishna Chaitanya, Vasu Kumar Reddy INTRODUCTION Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMP) are electromyographic responses to high-intensity acoustic stimuli that are used as a test for the vestibular system by providing information on otolith function and the functional integrity of the inferior vestibular nerve. 1 VEMP are a test that evaluates the saccule and inferior vestibular nerve in the peripheral vestibular nervous system. These are easy to perform, non-invasive, and cause minimal patient discomfort. 2 BPPV, Meniere’s disease, and Vestibular Neuritis are the most common diseases that cause peripheral vertigo. 3 The development of peripheral vertigo can be associated with the saccule or inferior vestibular nerve, which are pathways for VEMP. Also, in Meniere’s disease, as the process may be associated with a pathologic change in the saccule, VEMP testing could provide information about the involvement of the saccule in peripheral vertigo. Patients with vestibular neuritis show unilateral peripheral vestibular dysfunction mainly in the superior vestibular nerve. 4 ABSTRACT Background: Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMP) are electromyographic responses to high-intensity acoustic stimuli to test vestibular system, otolith function and integrity of inferior vestibular nerve. These are easy to perform and non-invasive. In this study, we aimed at clinical application of VEMP to evaluate common peripheral vestibular disorders. Methods: Prospective observational study carried in ENT department during January 2015-November 2016 over 40 patients in age group between 30-70 years with history of vertigo who underwent regular neuro-otological examination and VEMP. Results: Of these, 25 diagnosed with BPPV, 11 with Meniere’s disease, and four with vestibular neuritis. Eight patients showed delayed VEMP responses. 28 (70%) patients had normal VEMP, 12 (30%) had abnormal VEMP responses. Out of 25 patients suffering from benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) posterior semi-circular canal was involved in 20 (80%) patients and lateral semi-circular canal in 5 (20%) patients. Abnormal VEMP was found in 5 (20%) patients involving posterior semi-circular canal and in 1 (20%) patient involving lateral semi- circular canal. In patients with Meniere’s disease stage I, Meniere’s disease was observed in 7 (63.6%), stage II in 2 (18.1%), and stage IV disease in 1 (9.09%) patient. In these patients, abnormal VEMP was found in 3 (42.8%) of 7 stage I, 1 (50%) of 2 stage II and 1 (100%) of stage IV patients. One (20%) patient had abnormal VEMP responses during study. Conclusions: VEMP are short-latency EMG that evaluates saccule and inferior vestibular nerve in peripheral vestibular nervous system. VEMP should be considered as complementary test along with conventional vestibular function tests in patients with peripheral vertigo. Keywords: VEMP, Vestibular disorders, Vertigo, Meniere’s disease, Vestibular neuritis Department of ENT, Narayana Medical College and Hospital, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India Received: 04 October 2021 Revised: 19 October 2021 Accepted: 20 October 2021 *Correspondence: Dr. S. Rajesh Kumar, E-mail: entdrrajesh@gmail.com Copyright: © the author(s), publisher and licensee Medip Academy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.18203/issn.2454-5929.ijohns20214220