Abstract
In our previous study, we investigated the changes in the cerebral blood flow in patients with acute stage vestibular neuritis, by analyzing brain perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images using the easy Z-score imaging system (eZIS). The aim of this study was to compare the changes in the cerebral blood flow between the recovery stage and the acute stage of vestibular neuritis, and to evaluate the association between the cerebral blood flow and the clinical findings, that are namely, nystagmus, canal paresis and subjective symptoms. The investigation was based on the data of 3 patients who underwent a repeat brain perfusion SPECT at 6 months after the onset of the disease. In the acute stage, the blood flow to the parieto-insular vestibular cortex (PIVC) was increased on the side contralateral to the affected side. In the recovery stage, the increased blood flow to the PIVC showed a tendency to return to normal, in response to alleviation or disappearance of spontaneous nystagmus and positional nystagmus. On the other hand, the decreased blood flow to the visual cortex of either side showed no change in the acute or the recovery stage. The significant decrease of blood flow seen in Brodmann area 40 (BA40) on the left side improved only in patients in whom the nystagmus disappeared within 6 months of onset of the disease. It was considered that there may be some relationship between normalization of the increased blood flow in the PIVC or disappearance of nystagmus and normalization of the decreased blood flow in BA40.
