Dizziness: Test ID's Canal

A Quix Test is an accurate way to find selective canal involvement in Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) patients in many cases, according to Kevin Coughlin of Florida State University College of Medicine in Tallahassee, FL. The study will be presented in a poster session on Apr. 18 at the American Academy of Neurology meeting in Washington, DC.

Coughlin and colleagues used 167 individuals who complained of vertigo or dizziness.

“A logistic regression was performed to ascertain if the lateralization of the Quix Test could correctly predict the side of the affected canal in BPPV patients,” the authors wrote.

The individuals, gathered from the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital Balance Disorders Clinic, were given a questionnaire to determine the vestibular dysfunction risk factors. The Quix Test showed tonic postural changes through vestibulospinal inputs. After the participants completed posturography, Dix-Hallpike maneuver, and videonystagmography, the team could see if the Quix Test was able to predict semicircular canal involvement in BPPV.

In 89% of the cases, the Quix Test accurately predicted vestibular involvement.

“The direction of lateralization is opposite the canal affected in BPPV,” the team concluded. “Normal controls historically free of dizzy symptoms did not demonstrate lateralization.”