Case report

Inferior vestibular neuritis: 3 cases with clinical features of acute vestibular neuritis, normal calorics but indications of saccular failure

Per Monstad¹ , Siri Økstad² and Åse Mygland¹

¹  Department of Neurology, Sørlandet Sykehus, Kristiansand, Norway

²  Department of otolaryngology, Sørlandet Sykehus, Kristiansand, Norway

author email corresponding author email

BMC Neurology 2006, 6:45doi:10.1186/1471-2377-6-45

Published:	14 December 2006

Abstract

Background

Vestibular neuritis (VN) is commonly diagnosed by demonstration of unilateral vestibular failure, as unilateral loss of caloric response. As this test reflects the function of the superior part of the vestibular nerve only, cases of pure inferior nerve neuritis will be lost.

Case presentations

We describe three patients with symptoms suggestive of VN, but normal calorics. All 3 had unilateral loss of vestibular evoked myogenic potential. A slight, asymptomatic position dependent nystagmus, with the pathological ear down, was observed.

Conclusion

We believe that these patients suffer from pure inferior nerve vestibular neuritis.