OBJECTIVETo analyzed the characteristics of migrainous vertigo (MV), a kind of paroxysmal vertigo, in order to demonstrate the extent of damage and dysfunction in MV and to judge whether MV is peripheral or central vertigo.

METHODSTwenty-two cases of acute (5 cases) or subacute (17 cases) MV were examined with oto-neurological tests, spontaneous nystagmus, positional nystagmus and auditory tests.

RESULTSThere were 6 males and 16 females. Among those patients, 15 had migraine, 17 motion sickness, 15 family history of migraine or motion sickness, 1 visual aura, 7 motion intolerance (vertigo from head movement and body movement), 4 photophobia, 6 phonophobia and 5 vertigo from insomnia and emotion. There were likely to have vertigo in menstrual period in 2 cases. The duration of vertigo lasted from minutes to days. For pure-tone audiometric, 9 were normal which from mild to moderate hearing loss. Three cases had abnormal high frequency ABR bilaterally and 10 abnormal unilaterally. Subjective visual vertical were normal in all of the cases. Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials were abnormal in 14 cases (13 had low amplitude and 1 had longer latency of P13 wave). Bithermal caloric test was abnormal in 3 cases and 11 had abnormal ocular movement (9 with low gain of optokinetic nystagmus, 1 with overshoot in saccade and 1 with vertical nystagmus after head shaking), in which 10 had abnormal high frequency ABR and 1 was normal.

CONCLUSIONSMV could be peripheral or central vertigo and MV should be included in the differentiation of peripheral and central vertigo.