THE OUTCOME OF VESTIBULAR NERVE-SECTION FOR INTRACTABLE VERTIGO - THEPATIENTS POINT-OF-VIEW

To document the outcome of vestibular nerve section from the patient's point of view we reviewed 102 patients who had undergone vestibular n erve section 1 to 10 years after operation. Only 3 patients had experi enced further vertigo attacks: 2 of these were cured by a further, thi s time translabyrinthine vestibular nerve section; 1 patient developed multiple sclerosis. In contrast, about 50% of patients developed some subjective problem with balance while standing or walking; in 15% it was present all the time and of moderate severity. Despite this, over 85% of patients reported that they felt much better or back to normal after the operation and were satisfied with the outcome. The developme nt and application of objective preoperative measures of vestibular an d, in particular, vestibulospinal function might improve patient selec tion for vestibular nerve section and thus reduce the number of dissat isfied patients.