Progress in the Study of Vestibular Myogenic Potentials Evoked by Direct Current Stimulation

LI Xin; CHEN Wenjing

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1672-2922.2025.08.013

Abstract：Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials refer to myogenic action potentials recorded in superficial skeletal muscles of the body through specific reflex pathways in response to high-intensity sound,vibration or direct current stimulation of the utricle or saccule.Depending on the recording site,they can be divided into cervical,ocular and masseter vestibular evoked myogenic potentials.The two common clinical vestibular myogenic potentials are the cervical and oculomotor vestibular evoked myogenic potentials,recorded by stimulating the saccule or utricle on the same side of the sternocleidomastoid muscle or on the opposite side of the inferior oblique muscle.Both are widely used in the diagnosis of diseases related to the vestibular pathway.Stimulation includes air-conduction sounds,bone-conduction vibration and direct current stimulation,with the former two most commonly performed.Direct current stimulation is performed using a body surface electrode placed on the mastoid process to transmit electrical signals to the vestibular labyrinth and extracranial nerves.As a safe and reliable method of neuroelectric stimulation,it has been used in the study of pathologies such as vestibular disease and vestibular migraine,as well as vestibular physiology.Direct current stimulation is used to observe its effect on vestibular lesions and to study the function of the vestibular nerve.Direct current stimulation directly stimulating the afferent vestibule nerve is not yet a mature clinical research method.This study reviews the basis and existing academic research on direct current stimulation and vestibular evoked potentials.