Fukuda test
Purpose: Fukuda test is used to diagnose the causes of dizziness.
Protocol of execution: Patient should close his eyes, stretch his arms forward and began to walk in place, raising his knees above normal step height (approximately 45-60 degrees). The test is carried out for 1 minute, at about 1 step per second.
Evaluation of the results: The Fukuda test is estimated by the degree of deviation from the initial position, offset from the starting point and direction of the offset.
Normally, deviation does not exceed 30 degrees. At the same time, unilateral pheripheral defeat of the vestibular system causes turning of the patient during the test in the direction of the affected labyrinth. The central defeat will lead to presence of severe ataxia during the march, and the deviation can be in any direction, also there may be falls or turns in direction of the pathological process when the cerebellum is involved.
The absence of movement or movement to the back, especially in combination with wide swinging, is considered as substantial violation. The direction of movement may indicate on lateralization of the pheriperal lesion.
Table to evaluate the test in MotionLAB
Name | Description | Unit of measurement | Norm |
Displacement Distance | The distance between points in horizontal plane of the projection of the person’s position from the moment the test starts till the moment when test ends. | cm | Value rangng from от 20 to 100 cm. |
Displacement Direction | The angle in the horizontal plane between the line in forward direction (the sagittal line) of the human body in the initial position and the vector connecting the initial and final position of the person. | degrees (positive direction — cunterclockwise) | Value ranging from -30 to +30 degrees. Particularly serious violation is direction of movement in the rear hemisphere. |
Body Rotation | The horizontal angle between the frontal line of the human body in the initial position and frontal line of the human body in the final position. | Degrees (positive direction – counterclockwise) | Value ranging from -30 to +30 degrees. |
Penalty Marks | For each violated criterion specified above, 1 score should be added. | points | Meaning = 0. |