Vestibular Disease

The purpose this study is to measure sensitivity to visual and vestibular or balance motion. It is hoped that the results may help researchers better understand how aging and disease affect motion perception.

This study follows the successfully completed HOLOBalance project which was funded by the EU Horizon 2020 scheme. TheHOLOBalance platform delivers exercises demonstrated via a hologram of the physiotherapist and corrected in real time by the hologram prompts based on performance monitoring via sensors. Further information is available at: https://holobalance.eu/. HOLOBalance was developed as a comprehensive rehabilitation protocol for individualised remote (tele)rehabilitation balance physiotherapy programme. It includes different multisensory balance and gait exercises, physical activity and memory training and exergames (video games which are also exercises) to improve balance function in older adults. The system can thus assess and remotely monitor how users are performing the exercises. This pilot testing of a multisite randomised control trial (TeleRehab DSS, short for TeleRehabilitation Decision Support System) aims to investigating the usability and feasibility among a smaller sample population at each clinical site, identifying any technical bugs, and/or clinical procedural flaws to be remedied before delivery of the full-scale RCT.

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the occurrence of and to identify suitable strategies for screening and monitoring of inner ear damage in patients receiving cisplatin chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer. Researchers will compare patients who are receiving cisplatin chemoradiotherapy to patients who are only receiving radiotherapy. Patients will undergo standardized testing for hearing loss, tinnitus and vestibular dysfunction at baseline, during and after treatment. Optional genetic analyses will aim to identify genes known to predispose to cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.

This multi-center randomized trial (MCRT) will investigate the effectiveness of the VestAid application to provide equivalent or faster recovery from dizziness compared to standard-of-care delivery of vestibular rehabilitation exercises.