Hautant's Test: Differentiating Dizziness Causes

Hautant's Test is a clinical maneuver used to differentiate the source of dizziness or vertigo. It helps distinguish between vascular issues (like vertebral artery insufficiency) and non-vascular issues (like vestibular dysfunction).

[Image of Hautant's test procedure]

1. Purpose

The primary purpose of Hautant's Test is to **differentiate** between vascular causes (vertebral artery insufficiency) and vestibular/proprioceptive causes of dizziness or vertigo.

2. How to Perform

This test has two parts:

Part 1:

1. The patient is positioned in sitting with arms flexed to 90 degrees and palms facing up (supinated).
2. The patient closes their eyes and holds this position for 15-30 seconds with the head in neutral.
3. Observe for any arm drift or pronation.

Part 2:

1. The patient resumes the same arm position (arms forward, palms up).
2. The patient rotates and extends their neck to one side.
3. The patient closes their eyes and holds for 15-30 seconds.
4. Observe for any arm drift. Repeat on the other side.

3. Positive & Negative Sign

Positive Sign (Test is POSITIVE):
The result depends on when the arm drift occurs:

• Drift in Part 1 (Neutral Head): Suggests a Vestibular or Proprioceptive cause (non-vascular).
• Drift ONLY in Part 2 (Head Rotated): Suggests a Vascular cause (Vertebral Artery compression), as the neck position stresses the artery but not the vestibular system significantly more than neutral.

Negative Sign (Test is NEGATIVE):
The patient maintains arm position stability in both parts of the test.