Influence of body laterality on recovery from subjective visual vertical tilt after vestibular neuritis

The subjective visual vertical (SVV) is an indicator of vestibular otolithic function and mainly processed by the nondominant parietal cortex. We investigated the hypothesis that recovery from SVV tilt after vestibular neuritis can be influenced by the body's lateral preference. This prospective cohort follow-up study included 254 consecutive adult patients with vestibular neuritis. The recovery from SVV tilt was faster in patients with a left hand or eye dominance than in those with a right dominance. While in left-handers the side of the neuritis did not affect the speed of recovery, in right-handed subjects, the recovery from a right-sided neuritis was significantly slower than from a left-sided affection. These observations suggest that subjects with a left sensorimotor dominance have developed more significant midline-crossing projections to the parietal cortex, allowing them to cope faster with a unilateral vestibular deficit.