Caloric Testing

Excerpt

Caloric testing is a useful clinical tool to assess and quantify the functional status of individual vestibular systems. Caloric testing utilizes the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) to identify a unilateral peripheral deficit.

The VOR requires an intact functional brain stem. The VOR allows for eye fixation on a stationary target while the head is in motion; this keeps the target object in the center of the visual field and maintains the line of sight. As described below, caloric testing manipulates the VOR to assess the integrity of the lateral semicircular canals and their afferent nerves.