Correlation between vestibular test results and self-reported psychological complaints of patients with vestibular symptoms

Cognitive and emotional factors may affect balance; psychiatric conditions are a common component in patient dizziness. The treatment of patients with vertigo may be affected to a greater degree by the suffering due to this disease than by the severity of organic changes. Objective: This study aimed to investigate associations between vestibular test results and self-reported psychological complaints in patients evaluated during 2009 in an audiology unit at a hospital in Porto Alegre. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, descriptive-exploratory study of data taken from a database of the software VecWin (R) and VecWin (R) 2, developed by Neurograff (R). We investigated vestibular test results, reports of psychological symptoms reported spontaneously, and information such as age, sex and the presence of vertigo and/or dizziness. This study consisted of three steps: clustering, exclusion/inclusion and quantification. Conclusion: Age and gender and the presence or absence of vertigo and/or dizziness were not variables that influenced the outcomes of vestibular testing. There was a significant association between the presence of self-reported psychological complaints and normal vestibular test results. Thus, it is crucial that professionals pay attention to psychological issues reported by patients when the vestibular history is taken.