Assessment of Sacculomassetric and Sacculocollic Reflex Pathways in Individuals with Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Background Diabetes affects the peripheral auditory and vestibular systems. Research suggests that both cVEMP and mVEMP are affected in diabetic individuals. Masseter VEMP is a new tool that assesses the vestibule masseteric pathways. the study aimed to characterise the cVEMP and mVEMP findings in diabetes mellitus type -2. Method The study included 21 Participants with type 2 diabetes and 21 age- and gendermatched non-diabetic participants aged 48-68. Masseter VEMP and Cervical VEMP were recorded in 500Hz TB, presented at an intensity of 125 dBpe SPL. Results The result of the study suggests significantly prolonged P13 and P11 latencies in diabetic participants for both cVEMP and mVEMP compared to non-diabetic. No significant differences were observed in N23 and N21 latencies between the groups. Additionally, a significant reduction in cVEMP amplitude (P13-N23) was noted in diabetic individuals, while mVEMP amplitudes (P11-N21) remained similar across groups. There were no significant correlations between the duration of diabetes and VEMP parameters, nor between cVEMP and mVEMP responses in either group. Conclusion The findings reveal notable differences in vestibular reflex pathways in individuals with diabetes in cVEMP and mVEMP parameters. These results suggest that diabetes may lead to neural and labyrinthine impairments, and the degree of impairment vary and it affects differently on different pathways even though mVEMP has a similar saccular origin. Future research should continue to investigate these considering other factors such as diabetes severity, comorbidities, and lifestyle interventions to better understand and manage vestibular dysfunction in this population.