Magnetic vestibular stimulation influences resting-state fluctuations and induces visual-vestibular biases
J Neurol. 2017 Mar 7. doi: 10.1007/s00415-017-8447-6. [Epub ahead of print]
| Authors/Editors: | Boegle R, Ertl M, Stephan T, Dieterich M. |
|---|---|
| Publication Date: | 2017 |
Abstract
Dizziness is commonly reported in the presence of strong magnetic fields. It was recently shown that healthy subjects exposed to the static magnetic field of an MRI developed a persistent nystagmus, while patients with bilateral peripheral vestibular failure did not show any nystagmus. A Lorentz-force model was proposed as an explanation for the dependence of the nystagmus slow phase velocity (SPV) on the subject’s head orientation in the magnetic field as well as the magnetic field strength. Consequently, it was speculated that this magnetic vestibular stimulation (MVS) might influence fMRI results, as a nystagmus indicates a vestibular imbalance potentially influencing other systems via multisensory interactions.
