Diagnostic Value of Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials in Endolymphatic Hydrops: A Meta-Analysis

In this study, we evaluated the clinical diagnostic value of vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMPs) for endolymphatic hydrops (EH) by systematic review and Meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio and area under summary receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) were calculated. Subgroup analysis and publication bias assessment were also conducted. The pooled sensitivity and the specificity were 49% (95% CI: 46% to 51%) and 95% (95% CI: 94% to 96%), respectively. The pooled positive likelihood ratio was 18.01 (95% CI: 9.45 to 34.29) and the pooled negative likelihood ratio was 0.54 (95% CI: 0.47 to 0.61). AUC was 0.78 and the pooled diagnostic odds ratio of VEMPs was 39.89 (95% CI: 20.13 to 79.03). In conclusion, our present meta-analysis has demonstrated that VEMPs test alone is not sufficient for Meniere’s disease or delayed endolymphatic hydrops diagnosis, but that it might be an important component of a test battery for diagnosing Meniere’s disease or delayed endolymphatic hydrops. Moreover, VEMPs, due to its high specificity and non-invasive nature, might be used as a screening tool for EH.