Otoneurological aspects in Traumatic Brain Injuries: series of cases

ABSTRACT

It is a retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive, approved by Ethics Research Committee (ERC), under number CAAE 16728013.0.0000.5346. This is a series of cases that aims to investigate the presence of otoneurological symptoms and the postural balance of six patients with dizziness after Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Participants were submitted to a clinical anamnesis and the evaluations: Sensory Organization Test through Foam Laser Dynamic Posturography and oculomotor and vestibular tests of Computerized Vectoelectronystamography (VENG). The data were analyzed from the reference values for each evaluation. In posturography, it was observed that the greatest differences between the value obtained and the reference value were in positions VI, V and III, respectively. Sensory analysis indicated alteration mainly in the visual and vestibular preference systems. All the evaluated patients presented at least one alteration in the VENG tests. Five patients had alterations in the caloric test, and none presented alterations to the rotatory chair test (RCT), which evaluates the vestibular compensation. Considering vestibular complaints, four patients were on psychotropic treatment for depression. These results demonstrate the presence of vestibulo-ocular alterations in post-TBI, which should receive special attention due to associated central impairment.

Keywords:
Traumatic Brain Injuries; Dizziness; Postural balance; Pathologic nystagmus; Vestibular function tests