Four Ways to Be Dizzy: When Physiology Fails to Explain Disability Insights From the UVIS International Survey

NCT07297355 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: ABMA-3
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 250
• Locations: 3 countries
• Sites: 3

Brief Summary

The aim of this international study is to better understand how vestibular disorders affect daily life, including physical balance, vision and movement tolerance, emotional wellbeing, and cognitive functioning. Vestibular disorders are common but often difficult to diagnose because symptoms vary widely from one patient to another. To improve clinical care, we need large-scale information on the real-world experience of patients across different countries and clinical settings. The UCLouvain Vertigo International Survey (UVIS) collects standardized information from adults with confirmed vestibular disorders, including questionnaires about dizziness-related handicap, emotional symptoms, and cognitive-vestibular complaints. Ear-nose-throat (ENT) specialists also provide routine clinical test results, such as caloric testing, vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMP and oVEMP), video head impulse tests (vHIT), and posturography. By combining these data, the study aims to identify different patient profiles and to examine how subjective symptoms relate to the physiological function of the vestibular system. Participants take part during their routine clinical visit. They complete short questionnaires (on dizziness, anxiety, depression, cognitive symptoms, and daily functioning), and their ENT specialist encodes the results of the vestibular tests already performed as part of their usual care. No additional medical tests are required for the study. By comparing data from several centers in Belgium, France, and the United States, this project seeks to provide a more complete picture of vestibular disorders worldwide and to support the development of better diagnostic tools and more personalized rehabilitation strategies.

Conditions

Vestibular Disease; Vestibular Dysfunction

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Assessment of dizziness-related handicap

  DHI - Dizziness Handicap Inventory (25 items; physical, functional, emotional subscales). Scores 0-100. Higher scores = greater handicap.

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

• Assessment of emotional symptoms

  HADS - Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (14 items; Anxiety and Depression subscales). Scores 0-21 per subscale. Higher scores = more symptoms

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

• Assessment of cognitive-vestibular complaints

  NVI - Neuropsychological Vertigo Inventory (22 items assessing cognitive-vestibular symptoms: attention, memory, spatial orientation, visuospatial abilities). Higher scores = more complaints

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Vestibular Physiological Function - canal paresis percentage

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

• Vestibular Physiological Function - cVEMP and oVEMP

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

• Vestibular Physiological Function - video Head Impulse Test

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

• Vestibular Physiological Function - Posturography

  Through the entire study, approximately 36 months.

Study Arms (2)

Vestibular

Patients with vestibular loss diagnosed by senior ENT doctors with the gold standard ENT measures (caloric testing, head impulse test and/or vestibular evoked myogenic potential, ocular and cervical)

Healthy controls

People with no vestibular loss

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 90 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Vestibular loss diagnosed by senior ENT doctors

You may qualify if:

• Age between 18 and 90 years old.
• Vestibular loss diagnosed by senior ENT doctors

You may not qualify if:

• Previous neurological disorders (stroke, dementia, …)
• Current medication interfering with the testing (reducing reaction time).
• Visual difficulties interfering with the testing (Visual field reduction,…)
• Age below 18 years old.
• For healthy controls :
• \- Age between 18 and 90 years old.
• Previous neurological disorders (stroke, dementia, …)
• Current medication interfering with the testing (reducing reaction time)
• Visual difficulties interfering with the testing (Visual field reduction,…)
• Vertigo or balance complains or an history of previous vestibular disorder.
• Age below 18 years old.
• Not being able to understand the consigns of the task.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Université Catholique de Louvain: lead

Study Sites (3)

Medical University of South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina, 29425, United States

Location

Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc

Brussels, Belgium

Location

Hopital européen Marseille

Marseille, France

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Vestibular Diseases

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Labyrinth Diseases; Ear Diseases; Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: CASE CONTROL
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Target Duration: 1 Year
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 1, 2025
• First Posted: December 22, 2025
• Study Start: November 10, 2023
• Primary Completion: August 3, 2025
• Study Completion: August 3, 2025
• Last Updated: December 22, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1); BE (1); FR (1)