Acute vertigo of undetermined origin: diagnostic value of magnetic resonance imaging

Aims: The origin of acute vertigo often remains undetermined after neurological, otological, and CT examination in the emergency room. We investigated the diagnostic yield of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in these patients. Methods: Patients were included in the study if they had presented with sudden onset of vertigo to our Department between 01/2002 and 06/2005, and complete neurological, otological and cranial CT investigation allowed no definite allocation to peripheral or central origin of the vertigo. Results of cranial MRI including diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), clincal, and epidemiological informa…