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Prevalence of vestibular and balance disorders in children

Robert C O'Reilly1, Thierry Morlet, Brian D Nicholas

  • 1Department of Otolaryngology, Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, Wilmington, Delaware 19899, USA. roreilly@nemours.org

Otology & Neurotology : Official Publication of the American Otological Society, American Neurotology Society [And] European Academy of Otology and Neurotology
|August 24, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Pediatric balance and vestibular disorders are uncommon, affecting less than 1% of children. Many diagnosed children do not report balance issues, but associated conditions like hearing loss and syncope are common.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Otolaryngology
  • Neuroscience
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Vestibular and balance disorders can significantly impact a child's quality of life.
  • Understanding the prevalence and associated conditions is crucial for early diagnosis and management.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the prevalence of vestibular and balance disorders in children.
  • To analyze the rate of balance-related complaints and the odds ratio of related diagnoses.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective review of pediatric health system data over a 4-year period.
  • Analysis of International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision (ICD-9) codes for balance disorders.
  • Inclusion of chief complaints and related otologic/neuro-otologic diagnoses.

Main Results:

  • The cumulative prevalence of diagnosed balance disorders was 0.45%.
  • Only 1.03% of patients reported balance as a chief complaint, with 35.84% of these also diagnosed with a vestibular disorder.
  • Significant associations were found: syncope (OR 21x), sensorineural hearing loss (OR 43x), and headache (OR 16x) in specific pediatric balance disorder groups.

Conclusions:

  • The prevalence of pediatric balance and vestibular disorders is low.
  • Children diagnosed with these disorders often do not present with balance complaints.
  • Strong associations exist between sensorineural hearing loss, syncope, and headache in children with diagnosed balance disorders.
Abstract

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