Psychology Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Assessment | Biopsychology | Comparative | Cognitive | Developmental | Language | Individual differences | Personality | Philosophy | Social |
Methods | Statistics | Clinical | Educational | Industrial | Professional items | World psychology |

Biological: Behavioural genetics · Evolutionary psychology · Neuroanatomy · Neurochemistry · Neuroendocrinology · Neuroscience · Psychoneuroimmunology · Physiological Psychology · Psychopharmacology (Index, Outline)


In medicine, the caloric reflex test is a test of the vestibulo-ocular reflex. It is used by audiologists and other trained professionals to validate a diagnosis of asymmetric function in the peripheral vestibular system. Calorics are usually a subtest of the electronystagmography (ENG) test battery.

Technique and results[]

It involves irrigating cold or warm water or air into the external auditory canal.

  • If the water is cold (30oC) the eyes turn toward the ipsilateral ear, with horizontal nystagmus (quick horizontal eye movements) to the contralateral ear.[1][2]
  • If the water is warm (44oC) the eyes turn toward the contralateral ear, with horizontal nystagmus to the ipsilateral ear.
  • Absent reactive eye movement suggests vestibular weakness of the horizontal semicircular canal of the side being stimulated.

Mnemonic[]

Mnemonics are common in the medical literature. One mnemonic used to remember the direction of nystamgus is COWS.[3]

COWS: Cold water = nystagmus to the Opposite side, Warm water = nystagmus to the Same side.

See also[]

References[]

  1. Bardorf CM, Van Stavern GP. Nystagmus, Acquired. eMedicine.com. URL: http://www.emedicine.com/oph/topic339.htm. Accessed on: August 17, 2006.
  2. Narenthiran G. Neurosurgery Quiz. Annals of Neurosurgery. URL: http://www.annals-neurosurgery.org/quiz/nsq2/#a3. Accessed on: August 17, 2006.
  3. Webb C (1985). COWS caloric test.. Ann Emerg Med 14 (9): 938. PMID 4026002.

External links[]

This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).
Advertisement