Vestibular implant: does it really work? A systematic review

People with vestibular loss present a deficit in the vestibular system, which is primarily responsible for promoting postural control, gaze stabilization, and spatial orientation while the head moves. There is no effective treatment for a bilateral loss of vestibular function. Recently, a vestibular implant was developed for people with bilateral loss of vestibular function to improve this function and, consequently, the quality of life of these patients.

To identify in the scientific literature evidence that vestibular implants in people with vestibular deficit improves vestibular function.

One hundred and forty six articles were found from five databases and 323 articles from the gray literature mentioning the relationship between vestibular implant and vestibular function in humans. The PICOS strategy (Population, Intervention, Comparison and Outcome) was used to define the eligibility criteria. The studies that met the inclusion criteria for this second step were included in a qualitative synthesis, and each type of study was analyzed according to the bias risk assessment of the Joanna Briggs Institute through the critical assessment checklist Joanna Briggs institute for quasi-experimental studies and the Joanna Briggs institute critical assessment checklist for case reports.

Of the 21 articles included in reading the full text, 10 studies were selected for the qualitative analysis in the present systematic review. All ten articles analyzed through the critical assessment checklist Joanna Briggs institute showed a low risk of bias. The total number of samples in the evaluated articles was 18 patients with vestibular implants.

Taken together, these findings support the feasibility of vestibular implant for restoration of the vestibulo-ocular reflex in a broad frequency range and illustrate new challenges for the development of this technology.