Cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential in children and adolescents with enlarged vestibular aqueduct: systematic review

Abstract

Purpose To gather the parameters found in the cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP) in children and adolescents with enlarged vestibular aqueduct syndrome (SAVA) and identify the possible changes, when compared to the values found in normal hearing people of the same age group. Research strategy Systematic review registered in the PROSPERO database, prepared through a search in virtual databases, based on the selected keywords. Selection criteria Included scientific articles available in full that reported the evaluation using cVEMP in the 0 and 18 years old group , with a diagnosis of SAVA, without restrictions of language and year of publication; Studies on patients with any disorder other than otoneurological ones and populations outside the proposed age range were excluded. Results 984 records were identified from the search in the databases consulted and 5 articles were selected. In a total of 133 patients who underwent cVEMP, the presence of a response was observed in most cases, with no significant difference in latencies, but with an increase in amplitude and a decrease in cVEMP thresholds. Conclusion The cVEMP test is recommended in the evaluation of children and adolescents with SAVA and the characteristics of increase in amplitude and decrease in thresholds can be used as clinical parameters in the identification of this syndrome, together with the patient’s clinical history and imaging exams. However, it is essential to carry out more studies with the cVEMP test, also in children and adolescents with SAVA, to better standardize the values found, in order to make the correct diagnosis.