Diagnostic value of computerized dynamic posturography in the assessment of peripheral vestibular disorders.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to determine the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative  predictive  value  of  Computerized  Dynamic  Posturography  (CDP)  in  properly  labeling patients with peripheral vestibular disorders by Videonystagmography (VNG) as having vestibular dysfunction.
METHODS:
Design: Case - Control Study
Setting: Tertiary Private Hospital
Subjects: Twenty-three (23) patients aged 18 and above with no history of hypertension or cardiovascular disease and no intake of anti-vertigo medications for at least 48 hours prior to testing and with complete VNG and CDP results obtained on the same day or at least  two  days  apart  were  included  in  the  study. Cases were defined as those  diagnosed with a peripheral  vestibular  disorder  by VNG  while  controls  were  defined as those with  normal VNG results.  Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative  predictive value of CDP in labeling those with peripheral vestibular disorders as vestibular were determined using VNG as gold standard.
RESULTS: There were 11 cases  (4  males, 7 females) and 12 controls (8  males,  4  females).  Using VNG  as  the  gold  standard  for  diagnosing  peripheral  vestibular  disorders,  CDP  had  a  sensitivity of 45.45% and specificity of 66.67% with Positive Predictive Value(PPV) of 55.56% and Negative Predictive Value(NPV) of 57.14%  in  assessing  peripheral vestibular disorders among the adults tested.  Interestingly, 33.33% of patients with normal VNG may actually have had a vestibular dysfunction that could be detected by CDP.
CONCLUSION: Prospective studies with larger sample sizes utilizing VNG and CDP are recommended in order to verify our findings.