Objective: To study the diagnostic value of the oculomotor center test in the elderly patients with vertigo. Methods: 70 elders over 60 years old with vertigo and 25 other healthy elders had been tested with electronystagrnography. The quantitative analysis of the oculomotor center test had been made in all patients. Results: All the tests were normal in the healthy group and in the group with peripheral vertigo except 4 patients showed type Ⅲ in the eye tracking test. In the group of central vertigo

12 patients (44.4%) presented abnormality in the ocular saccade test; 17 patients had type Ⅲ～Ⅳ in the eye tracking test (63.0%); the abnormal rate of optokinetic nystagmus was 81.5%.There was significant difference in the test of ocular saccade

eye tracking and optokinetic nystagmus between the three groups (P<0.01). Further quantitative analysis showed that differences of frequncy

equal amplitude of vibration and nystagmus slow phase velocity of the eye to the right and left in optokinetic nystagmus of three groups had significance (P<0.05). Conclusion:Oculomotor center test had high diagnostic value in the central vertigo and could be used as a differential index between the peripheral and central vertigo.