Quantitative analysis of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo fatigue under canalithiasis conditions

Boselli, F.; Kleiser, L.; Bockisch, C. J.; Hegemann, S. C. A.; Obrist, Dominik (2014). Quantitative analysis of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo fatigue under canalithiasis conditions. Journal of biomechanics, 47(8), pp. 1853-1860. Elsevier 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2014.03.019

[img] Text
1-s2.0-S0021929014001894-main.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to registered users only
Available under License Publisher holds Copyright.

Download (2MB) | Request a copy

In our daily life, small flows in the semicircular canals (SCCs) of the inner ear displace a sensory structure called the cupula which mediates the transduction of head angular velocities to afferent signals. We consider a dysfunction of the SCCs known as canalithiasis. Under this condition, small debris particles disturb the flow in the SCCs and can cause benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), arguably the most common form of vertigo in humans. The diagnosis of BPPV is mainly based on the analysis of typical eye movements (positional nystagmus) following provocative head maneuvers that are known to lead to vertigo in BPPV patients. These eye movements are triggered by the vestibulo-ocular reflex, and their velocity provides an indirect measurement of the cupula displacement. An attenuation of the vertigo and the nystagmus is often observed when the provocative maneuver is repeated. This attenuation is known as BPPV fatigue. It was not quantitatively described so far, and the mechanisms causing it remain unknown. We quantify fatigue by eye velocity measurements and propose a fluid dynamic interpretation of our results based on a computational model for the fluid–particle dynamics of a SCC with canalithiasis. Our model suggests that the particles may not go back to their initial position after a first head maneuver such that a second head maneuver leads to different particle trajectories causing smaller cupula displacements.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

10 Strategic Research Centers > ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering Research > ARTORG Center - Cardiovascular Engineering (CVE)

UniBE Contributor:

Obrist, Dominik

ISSN:

0021-9290

Publisher:

Elsevier

Language:

English

Submitter:

Dominik Obrist

Date Deposited:

15 Sep 2014 16:37

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 14:32

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.jbiomech.2014.03.019

Uncontrolled Keywords:

BPPV, Canalithiasis, Semicircular canals (SCCs), Endolymph flow, Nystagmus, Method of Fundamental Solutions, Force Coupling Method

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.48873

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/48873

Actions (login required)

Edit item Edit item
Provide Feedback