• Ryan N Moran, Tracey Covassin, R J Elbin, Dan Gould, and Sally Nogle.
• Athletic Training Research Lab, Department of Health Science, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA.
• Am J Sports Med. 2018 May 1; 46 (6): 1475-1480.

BackgroundThe Vestibular/Ocular Motor Screening (VOMS) measure is a newly developed vestibular and ocular motor symptom provocation screening tool for sport-related concussions. Baseline data, psychometric properties, and reliability of the VOMS are needed to further understand the applications of this tool, especially in the youth population, where research is scarce.PurposeTo establish normative data and document the internal consistency and false-positive rate of the VOMS in a sample of nonconcussed youth athletes.Study DesignCross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3.MethodsA total of 423 youth athletes (male = 278, female = 145) between the ages of 8 and 14 years completed baseline VOMS screening before the start of their respective sport seasons. Internal consistency was measured with Cronbach α and inter-item correlations.ResultsApproximately 60% of youth athletes reported no symptom provocation on baseline VOMS assessment, with 9% to 13% scoring over the cutoff levels (score of ≥2 for any individual VOMS symptom, near point convergence distance of ≥5 cm). The VOMS displayed a high internal consistency (Cronbach α = .97) at baseline among youth athletes.ConclusionThe current findings provide preliminary support for the implementation of VOMS baseline assessment into clinical practice, due to a high internal consistency, strong relationships between VOMS items, and a low false-positive rate at baseline in youth athletes.

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