Electronystagmography (ENG)
This is carried out in a dark room. It takes about 45 minutes and may involve:
  · Watching a red dot that moves in patterns
  · Watching a black-and-white striped curtain moving around you
  · Being turned round slowly in a motorised chair - this may temporarily give you the feeling of having been on a playground roundabout.

During the test your eye movements are recorded using recording leads and sticky pads, placed on the surface of the skin.

In some centres, goggles with built-in video cameras are used to record and analyse the eye movement. The tests will be similar to those carried out with ENG but the recording is made with the goggles rather than recording leads.

Caloric test
Each ear is irrigated with warm and cool water or air for 30-60 seconds. This causes the ear's balance mechanism to react, resulting in eye movements. These are recorded and the information is used to determine whether there is equal balance function in both ears. It is quite normal to feel a sensation of turning during the irrigation but it generally only lasts 2-3 minutes. The whole test takes about 20-30 minutes to complete including rests between the irrigations.

Equitest
Also known as ‘computerised dynamic posturography’, this test measures your overall balance and takes about 20 minutes. While you stand securely strapped on a moving platform, we assess various aspects of your balance.

Simple Posturography Testing
Some clinicians need to see if you can manage to stand with your eyes closed for up to 60 seconds. Another commonly used test of posture involves asking you to stand on one leg, for as long as you can without hopping, or taking a step, or putting the other foot down. Some clinicians in this field will aslo ask you to walk along a straight line, to see if you have to take sidesteps, and this is called Gait analysis. There will be someone watching that you do not overbalance!

Pure tone audiogram (PTA)
This test measures your hearing in both ears and may take about 20 minutes. Each time you hear a sound through headphones, you respond by pressing a button.

A simple and painless ear examination

Tympanogram
This measures your middle ear pressure by placing small plugs in your ears. When used with loud noises, it can also assess the contraction of one of the middle ear muscles.

Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR)
This assesses how well the nerve to the ear is working. Using recording leads and sticky pads on the forehead and behind the ears, we record hearing-related brain waves in response to loud sounds. The test is painless and takes up to 30 minutes.

The Balance Interest Group would like to thank Dr R Palaniappan for allowing us to adapt his booklet.

© 2003 Balance Interest Group