How can Infrared Video Goggles help you?
Infrared video goggles assist your physical therapist at Fyzical therapy and Balance Centers in Mechanicsburg in determining
where your vertigo complaints might be originating from. The goggles have invisible
infrared lights that can illuminate the eyes of a patient suffering from vertigo and help to
allow for a differential diagnosis between central and peripheral vestibular disorders.
Fyzical Therapy and Balance Centers uses this device to help us determine where the
source of a patient's dizziness or vertigo may be coming from.
There are special tests done to determine if the problem originates from more of a central/ brain origin or a
peripheral/vestibular system origin. When performing these tests the therapist must
look at what a patient’s eyes do during the specific testing. The problem that exists is
some patients have learned compensation techniques to fixate their eyes on an object
to help decrease their dizziness complaints. While this may help a patient feel better, it
unfortunately, keeps the therapist from seeing an abnormal movement of the eyes
during certain tests. The goggles create a dark environment for the patient while
projecting a video of the eyes to a computer screen. This prevents the patient from
being able to fixate their eyes and allows the therapist to see any abnormal eye
movements that could provide information as to the potential source of the patient’s
problem.
Another key use for the Infrared Video Goggles, that can be found at Fyzical Therapy
and Balance Centers in Mechanicsburg, is to correctly diagnose a common vertigo problem called BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo). This problem occurs when calcium carbonate crystals get into one or more of the vestibular semicircular canals and certain maneuvers must be performed to remove those crystals from the canals. A common misconception is there is ONE maneuver to remove those crystals. This is FALSE. There are three canals in each vestibular system and one vestibular system in each ear. Each canal has one OR MORE repositioning maneuvers that can be performed to remove the crystals. The key is determining what canal has the problem. The way to
determine this is to see what direction the eye moves during certain testing. The
goggles are key to properly evaluating eye movements seen during these positional
tests.
Your vestibular therapists, at Fyzical Therapy and Balance Centers in Mechanicsburg (717-591-3000), have been trained in the use of this specialized equipment and look forward to providing you with a complete evaluation for your vertigo and balance complaints.
To make an appointment call 717-591-3000 or click here