vHIT

Video Head Impulse Test (vHIT)

The test involves wearing special goggles which monitor the eye movements as the head is moved abruptly in different directions. Individuals with normal balance can maintain a steady gaze but those with defective semicircular canal function cannot keep up and there is a lag between head movements and eye movements. The vHIT provides an independent assessment of each ear (similar to the caloric test which assesses the lateral canals and superior vestibular nerve) but also assesses the anterior and posterior semicircular canals and the inferior vestibular nerve.