VEMP Testing

They measure different parts of the same system. A VNG evaluates the horizontal canals and the pathways that control eye movement. A VEMP looks at the otolith organs and the nerves that serve them, which a VNG cannot reach. When symptoms include sound-induced dizziness, pressure sensitivity, or hearing your own voice and footsteps unusually loudly, a VEMP is often the test that explains why.

In practice the two are frequently ordered together as part of one balance workup. Doing both at a single Mesa appointment saves you a second trip and gives the interpreting audiologist a fuller picture before the report goes back to your physician.

Preparation is light compared with a VNG. Eat normally, take your usual medications unless your physician says otherwise, and skip lotion or heavy makeup on your neck and forehead so the electrodes stick well. Wearing a shirt with a wide or open collar makes the setup easier.

Bring your hearing history if you have one, since a VEMP relies on loud sound and we check your ears first. Let the office know in advance about a perforated eardrum, recent ear surgery, or a neck condition, because any of those can change how the test is run. Questions before your visit can go to (480) 265-8067.

VEMP is one of the strongest indicators. In superior canal dehiscence, a thin spot or opening in the bone above the superior semicircular canal creates a third mobile window in the inner ear, and the reflex responds at unusually low sound levels with unusually large amplitudes. That signature is what the test looks for.

A diagnosis is not made on VEMP alone. Results are read alongside your symptoms, hearing test, and usually a high-resolution CT ordered by your physician, since imaging confirms the bony defect. What our report does is tell the referring ENT or neurologist whether the physiology supports the suspicion, which is often what determines whether imaging is worth ordering at all.