Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials : physiology, variability, and statistical characteristics

[摘要] (cont.) In the second part of the thesis, we develop a computational model of VEMP physiology, and use the model to separate external sources of variability from internal noise. The model outputs are also used to define a statistical measure, the inverse coefficient of variation (iCOV), which correlates with altered vestibular sensitivity, but is relatively robust to other changes. When applied to the experimental data, the iCOV is found to yield estimates of vestibular sensitivity that are more stable than the conventional VEMP amplitude. This measure also reveals a diversity of response threshold and growth characteristics within the clinically normal population. These findings suggest that the proposed approach could lead to the development of an improved clinical tool, but could also yield new insights into the physiological mechanisms of vestibular pathology.

[发布机构] Massachusetts Institute of Technology