Cognitive Abilities and Listening Effort in Individuals with Vestibular Migraine

Background: Given the evidence of cognitive deficits in individuals with vestibular dysfunction, reduced cognitive resources may impact the effort required to process auditory information, particularly in adverse listening conditions. Although existing literature suggests impaired performance on cognitive tasks in vestibular disorders in general, research in this area specific to patients with vestibular migraine is limited.Purpose: This article aims to investigate working memory, auditory attention, and listening effort among individuals with vestibular migraine.Research Design: This study employed a non-experimental standard group comparison design.Study Sample: Individuals with vestibular migraine (n = 14) and healthy control subjects (n = 13) were recruited.Data Collection and Analysis: Operation Span and Backward Digit Span tasks were administered to assess the working memory and test of attention in listening to assess auditory attention, and listening effort was assessed using the dual-task paradigm.Results: The Operation Span, Reaction Time for the attention task, and the Repeat and Recall scores for the listening effort task were significantly poorer in the vestibular migraine group than in the control group.Conclusions: These outcomes underscore the cognitive burden imposed by vestibular migraine and emphasize the need for further research to explore the underlying mechanisms and develop targeted interventions to address these deficits.Clinical Relevance Statement: This study emphasizes the clinical importance of early identification of vestibular migraine to mitigate its potential impact on cognitive and auditory functioning. It highlights the need for routine assessment of working memory, attention, and listening effort, enabling timely intervention through targeted rehabilitation strategies to improve patient outcomes.