How is Meniere's disease diagnosed?

To diagnose Meniere's disease, your doctor will first ask questions about your symptoms and any risk factors you may have, such as allergies or certain medicines. You'll need to take a hearing test and possibly several other tests to judge how well your inner ear is working.

For example, an examiner may flow warm and cool air or water into your ears or place you in a revolving chair. Either test will cause your eyes to move involuntarily due to fluid movement in the inner ear; a machine can measure these movements to see whether they are normal. To judge how you balance, an examiner may conduct a posturography test in which you stand on a platform (with a safety harness) and try to keep your balance. You may need an MRI or other imaging test to make sure you don't have a tumor or something else that can cause symptoms similar to Meniere's disease.

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To diagnose Meniere's disease, your doctor will first ask questions about your symptoms and any risk factors you may have, such as allergies or certain medicines. You'll need to take a hearing test and possibly several other tests to judge how well... More

Natural Standard, The Authority on Integrative Medicine answered:

The American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) has proposed diagnosis criteria for Ménière's syndrome. According to AAO-HNS guidelines, a definite diagnosis of Ménière's syndrome requires: two spontaneous episodes of vertigo each lasting 20 minutes or longer (with no time frame); ringing in the ear (tinnitus) or feeling of fullness in the ear; and documented hearing loss on a hearing test. Vertigo must be present and at least one of the other symptoms for a diagnosis of Ménière's syndrome.

For hearing: An audiometric examination (hearing test) typically indicates a sensory type of hearing loss in the affected ear. Speech discrimination (the individual's ability to distinguish between words like "sit" and "fit") is often diminished in the affected ear.

For balance: An ENG (electronystagmograph) may be performed to evaluate balance function. In a darkened room, recording electrodes are placed near the eyes. Warm and cool water or air is gently introduced into each ear canal. Since the eyes and ears work in coordination through the nervous system, measurement of eye movements can be used to test the balance system. In about 50% of individuals, the balance function is reduced in the affected ear. Rotational testing or balance platform may also be performed to evaluate the balance system.

Electrocochleography: An electrocochleograph (ECoG) measures the electrical potentials generated in the inner ear as a response to sound. An ECoG may indicate increased inner ear fluid pressure in some cases of Ménière's syndrome.

Auditory brain stem response: The auditory brain stem response (ABR), a computerized test of the hearing nerves and brain pathways, computed tomography (CT), or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be needed to rule out a tumor occurring on the hearing and balance nerve. Such tumors are rare, but they can cause symptoms similar to Ménière's syndrome.

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More Related Answers from Natural Standard, The Authority on Integrative Medicine

The American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) has proposed diagnosis criteria for Ménière's syndrome. According to AAO-HNS guidelines, a definite diagnosis of Ménière's syndrome requires: two... More

Healthwise answered:

Your doctor can usually diagnose Ménière's disease by asking about your medical history and doing a physical exam.

If the cause of your vertigo is unclear, your doctor may want to do more tests to determine whether your symptoms are caused by problems in the inner ear or in the brain. Brain-related causes of vertigo (such as stroke, head injury, brain tumors, or multiple sclerosis ) are less common.

Other tests that may be done to rule out other causes of your symptoms and to confirm a diagnosis of Ménière's disease include:

Hearing tests, to detect hearing loss. A specific type of hearing test, called an auditory brain stem response (ABR) test, may be done to find out whether the nerve from the inner ear to the brain is working correctly. Hearing loss supports a diagnosis of Ménière's disease.
Electronystagmography, which uses electrodes to measure eye movements. It looks for characteristic eye movements that occur when the inner ear is stimulated. The pattern of eye movements can point to the location of the cause of the vertigo, such as the inner ear or the central nervous system.
Imaging tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging of the head (MRI) or computed tomography of the head (CT scan), which may be done if symptoms could be caused by a brain problem.