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IntroductionVestibular deficits are considered rare in children, but the lack of systematic screening leads to underdiagnosis. It has been demonstrated that chronic vestibular dysfunction impacts the normal psychomotor development of children. Early identification is needed to allow for clinical management, ensuring better global development. For this purpose, our research group has developed the Geneva Balance Test (GBT), aiming to objectively quantify the balance capacity of children over a broad age range, to screen for bilateral vestibulopathy (BV), and to quantify the improvement of balance abilities in children.MethodsTo determine the capacity of the GBT to quantify the balance capacity of children with BV, we conducted an observational prospective study with three populations: 11 children with BV, and two age-matched control groups composed of (1) 15 healthy subjects without the vestibular or auditory disorder (HS) and (2) 11 pediatric cochlear implant recipients (CIs) without vestibular disorders. Results of the three populations have been compared in three different age sub- groups (3–5, 6–9, and ≥10 years), and with results of a short, modified version of the Bruininks-Oseretsky test of Motor proficiency Ed. 2 (mBOT-2).ResultsStatistical analyses demonstrated significant differences in the scores of the GBT between children aged 3–5, 6–9, and ≥10 years with BV and in both control populations (HS and CI). BV scores reflected poorer balance capacities at all ages. Children in the youngest CI sub-group (3–5 years) showed intermediate GBT scores but reached HS scores at 6–9 years, reflecting an improvement in their balance capacities. All the results of the GBT were significantly correlated with mBOT-2 results, although only a few BV completed the entire mBOT-2.DiscussionIn this study, the GBT allowed quantifying balance deficits in children with BV. The BOT-2 test is not validated for children

Background and aim: Bilateral Vestibulopathy (BVP) leads to unsteadiness when walking, which worsens in darkness or on uneven ground, as well as oscillopsia during head or body movement. A previous review concluded that clinical balance tests that challenge multiple aspects of balance should be investigated, since simple tests struggle to distinguish between BVP and healthy participants. Our aim was (1) to test if the more comprehensive Mini-BESTest is feasible in BVP, (2) to examine how participants perform in terms of their overall and subcomponent scores and (3) to compare these scores with healthy reference data from the literature.Methods: Fifty participants with BVP completed the Mini-BESTest as part of a larger study. The Mini-BESTest has 4 components: anticipatory, reactive postural control, sensory orientation and dynamic gait. It comprises 14 items with a maximum score of 28. Falls incidence in the previous 12 months was obtained by questionnaire. To compare the overall and sub-scores between our participants with BVP and those of healthy participants from the literature (n=327; obtained via PubMed searches and contacting authors), Mann-Whitney U tests were used. Sub scores within the BVP group were also compared. Spearman correlations were used to investigate the relationships between Mini-BESTest score and age.Results: No floor or ceiling effects were observed. Participants with BVP had significantly lower Mini-BESTest total scores than the healthy group (BVP mean=20.8, Healthy mean=24.2, U(NBVP=49, NHealthy=327)=4564.00, p

La maladie de Menière est caractérisée par des épisodes récidivants de vertige associés à des fluctuations de l'audition, des acouphènes et une sensation de plénitude dans l'oreille atteinte. Même s'il ne permet pas d'expliquer toutes les manifestations de la maladie, l'élargissement de l'espace endolymphatique – ou hydrops endolymphatique (HE) – en est une caractéristique histologique classique. Les progrès de l'imagerie par résonance magnétique permettent maintenant la visualisation in vivo des espaces liquidiens de l'oreille interne et l'appréciation d'un éventuel HE. Cet article traite de ces avancées et leurs potentielles implications diagnostiques dans le contexte d'une maladie de Menière et plus généralement dans les affections cochléovestibulaires.