To examine interrelationships between various Vestibular/Ocular-Motor Screen (VOMS) items, to characterize recovery in VOMS performance in a sample of post-concussion adolescents.

Previous studies indicated that post-concussion vestibular and ocular motor deficits are common with a prevalence ranging from 28% to 90%. It is recognized that vestibular and ocular motor deficits can contribute to many post-concussion symptoms such as dizziness, balance problems, blurred vision, headache, nausea, sensitivity to light, sensitivity to sound, and fogginess. The Vestibular/Ocular-Motor Screen (VOMS) was developed to screen for seven aspects of vestibular and ocular motor impairments after concussion. This is the first study to document that the VOMS tool, originally designed as a screening tool, can capture recovery in vestibular and ocular motor function after concussion. This is the first study to analyze vestibular and ocular motor recovery using VOMS.

Seventy-seven patients with concussion and seventy-seven healthy participants completed the study. Spearman-rho (r_s) correlation coefficient was used. Wilcoxon signed rank test and McNemar's test were used to examine changes in VOMS over the course of VPT. Mann-Whitney U and χ² test were used to compare VOMS scores at the conclusion of VPT to healthy controls.

With the exception of NPC distance, all VOMS items were inter-related (r_s=0.42-0.79, p<0.001). Over the course of VPT, significant improvements in VOMS performance were observed, and discharge scores were similar to scores observed in healthy adolescents.