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Validation of a Novel Wearable Head Sensor for Use During Vestibular Rehabilitation - Vertigenius

Written by Vertigenius - World Leader in Digital Therapy for Vertigo, Balance & Fall Risk | Jun 5, 2024 11:00:00 PM

Meldrum D, Murray D, Scallan R, Hayden C, Walter E, Molina B. Academic Unit of Neurology, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland

Purpose/Hypothesis

• Head movement kinematics are altered in vestibular disease1,2 and head movement is both the cause of symptoms and a significant component of rehabilitation.3

• Oversight of head movement during the vestibular rehabilitation program is desirable both to track and progress exercises.

• This study aimed to validate a novel wearable head sensor4 against the gold standard video head impulse test (vHIT).

Methods

  1. N=10 healthy adults (mean age 35, 7F:3M) simultaneously wore the novel head sensor (VERTIGENIUS CE) and the vHIT goggles (Otometrics).
  2. Participants performed 30 secs of vestibular adaptation exercises at frequencies of 50, 80, 100 and 120 Beats Per Minute (BPM), paced with a metronome (Fig.2).
  3. Angular velocity of head movement (deg/sec) in yaw and pitch planes from both systems were time stamped & converted to frequency (BPM).
  4. A Two-way ANOVA and Bland and Altman analysis were used to determine agreement between the systems.

Results

• No significant differences were found between the two systems at any frequency (BPM) of head movement except for lower frequency of vertical head movement (50BPM) (Fig 3, Table 1).

• Velocities of head movement (degree/sec) at different frequencies are shown in Table 1.

Clinical Bottom Line

• Wearable sensors that accurately track head kinematics have the potential to advance understanding of exercise performance and progression during vestibular rehabilitation, providing feedback to patients and oversight for clinicians. 

• The VERTIGENIUS head sensor tracks head frequency with acceptable accuracy during adaptation exs.

• A clinical study is underway using the VERTIGENIUS sensor and digital platform recruiting individuals with MS for vestibular rehabilitation.

Conclusion

• The VERTIGENIUS head sensor had high agreement with the vHIT at movement frequencies that are considered therapeutic for vestibular rehabilitation.

References 

  1. Wang, L., Zobeiri, O.A., Millar, J.L., Schubert, M.C. and Cullen, K.E., 2021. Head movement kinematics are altered during gaze stability exercises in vestibular schwannoma patients. Scientific reports, 11(1), pp.1-15.
  2. Mijovic, T., Carriot, J., Zeitouni, A. and Cullen, K.E., 2014. Head movements in patients with vestibular lesion: a novel approach to functional assessment in daily life setting. Otology & neurotology: official publication of the American Otological Society, American Neurotology Society [and] European Academy of Otology and Neurotology, 35(10), p.e348.
  3. Lehnen, N., Kellerer, S., Knorr, A.G., Schlick, C., Jahn, K., Schneider, E., Heuberger, M. and Ramaioli, C., 2018. Head-movement-emphasized rehabilitation in bilateral vestibulopathy. Frontiers in neurology, 9, p.562.
  4. Meldrum, D., et al. (2022). “Toward a Digital Health Intervention for Vestibular Rehabilitation: Usability and Subjective Outcomes of a Novel Platform.” Frontiers in Neurology 13.
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