During the treatment process for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) using the canalith repositioning procedure, the otolith can inadvertently enter the semicircular canal instead of the utricle. Canal conversion refers to the situation where the otolith enters a different semicircular canal, while reentry occurs when the otolith returns to the same semicircular canal. The occurrence of a canal conversion can complicate the accurate diagnosis and treatment of BPPV, potentially leading to misdiagnosis and unsuccessful results in the canalith repositioning procedure. In this review, we aim to summarize the incidence, clinical features, and associated risk factors of canal conversion and reentries.
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common etiology of benign vestibulopathy. Various treatments for BPPV have been developed, and appropriate treatments for each subtype of BPPV have been provided and used in accordance with clinical practice guidelines published by the American Academy of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery in 2008 and 2017. Although many therapeutic maneuvers have been reported to show high success rates in the treatment of BPPV patients, some cases are not effective even by appropriate therapeutic maneuvers. This article reviews various factors affecting the successful treatment of BPPV patients.
Objectives This study aimed to investigate clinical significance of a head-bending test in benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) involving the posterior semicircular canal (PC-BPPV).
Methods We retrospectively recruited 256 patients with unilateral PC-BPPV between January 2016 and December 2021, and assessed the clinical characteristics of patients showing head-bending nystagmus (HBN).
Results Of 256 patients, 138 (53.9%) showed HBN. Most patients (n=136, 98.6%) had downbeat nystagmus with (n=38) or without (n=98) torsional component. The remaining two patients had pure upbeat and torsional nystagmus, respectively. The torsional component was directed to the contralesional side in all. Between patients with and without HBN, there were no significant differences in clinical characteristics such as age, lateralization, types of BPPV (canalolithiasis or cupulolithiasis), and success rate of repositioning maneuver.
Conclusions Head-bending test may be useful in predicting the diagnosis and lateralization of PC-BPPV.
Objectives Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is one of the most common causes of dizziness. Even though the etiology of BPPV has been widely studied, the exact mechanism remains still unclear. One of the possible factors explaining the pathophysiology of BPPV is ischemia of vestibule. In the present study, we have focused on the platelet indices including mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), and platelet crit (PCT) to assess a risk of vestibule ischemia causing BPPV.
Methods From January 2021 to March 2021, a retrospective review was performed on 39 patients diagnosed with BPPV through vestibular nystagmography. For each platelet indices, a comparative analysis was conducted between the patient group and control group.
Results There were no significant differences when the platelet, MPV, PDW, and PCT values were compared between the study and control group. Rather, the control group showed higher PDW value than the study group.
Conclusions Ischemia of vestibule is one of the well-known causes of BPPV, but the current study showed that BPPV cannot be explained by the vestibule ischemia itself. Further studies are needed to identify the potential of ischemia regarding BPPV by approaching with other methods with a large study group.
Objectives This study was performed to determine characteristics and the prognostic values in idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) with comorbid ipsilateral canal paresis (CP) and/or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).
Methods Of the 338 patients with a diagnosis of idiopathic SSNHL, 29 patients (8.6%) with CP and 24 patients (7.1%) with BPPV were recruited and compared to 23 patients with SSNHL and vertigo but without CP or BPPV. The patients were evaluated for their initial hearing threshold, type of canal involved, response to repositioning maneuvers, and hearing outcome for 6 months.
Results Patients with CP (+) BPPV (‒) showed lower pure-tone averages than those with CP (‒) BPPV (+) on initial and follow-up audiograms. The improvement in pure-tone averages was less in the CP (+) BPPV (‒) group than in the CP (‒) BPPV (+) group. The improvement in speech discrimination scores was less in the CP (+) BPPV (‒) group than in the CP (‒) BPPV (‒) group. BPPV most commonly involved the posterior canal (15 of 24, 62.5%), followed by the horizontal canal (13 of 24, 54.2%). Three of 24 patients (12.5%) had recurrences of BPPV.
Conclusions CP is a more serious sign for hearing recovery than BPPV, although both CP and BPPV are negative prognostic indicators of auditory function in SSNHL. Concurrent CP and/or BPPV in SSNHL suggest combined damage to the vestibule and may indicate severe and widespread labyrinthine damage, leading to a poor prognosis.
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Re-fixation Saccade at Video-Head Impulse Test in Patients with Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss Dong Hyuk Jang, Sun Seong Kang, Hyun Joon Shim, Yong-Hwi An Research in Vestibular Science.2023; 22(2): 46. CrossRef
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common cause of recurrent vertigo that is characterized by sudden onset of vertigo elicited by positional change. American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) and American Academy of Neurology provided clinical practice guideline for BPPV in 2008. Since then, Bárány Society has published BPPV diagnostic criteria in 2015, and AAO-HNS has revised BPPV clinical practice guideline in 2017 to publish update version. This article reviewed recent diagnostic criteria for BPPV included in the International Classification of Vestibular Disorders of Bárány Society and updated practice guideline in the BPPV diagnosis presented by AAO-HNS.
Objectives The influence of specific meteorological conditions, such as solar radiation quantity, duration of sunshine, and their covariation on the incidence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) has been rarely investigated. Aiming at better predictions of the monthly variation of BPPV, we investigated variations in the monthly incidence of BPPV patients and meteorological parameters.
Methods A total of 2,111 patients who had been diagnosed with BPPV at one institution were analyzed retrospectively. Monthly counts of BPPV patients were analyzed for incidence distributions throughout the 5 years. The relationship between intra-annual distribution of BPPV and meteorological parameters was compared by the time series analysis.
Results The lowest monthly incidence of BPPV patients was found in September and the highest monthly incidence was found in December. Statistically, as a result of the time series analysis, a periodic fluctuation of both quantity of solar radiation (p=0.004) and percentage of sunshine duration (p=0.002) was identified, but a periodic fluctuation of both number of BPPV patients (p=0.316) and sunshine duration (p=0.057) was not identified.
Conclusions Unlike previous studies, the results of time series analysis did not confirm that there is a periodic fluctuation in the incidence of BPPV patients. The incidence of BPPV may be more affected by other factors than by meteorological parameters.
Objectives Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), a common cause of vertigo in the elderly, shares common pathogenic mechanisms with osteoporosis. We investigated the efficacy and safety of intravenous zoledronic acid in elderly patients with BPPV and osteoporosis.
Methods We performed a 3-year observational study with elderly patients who were diagnosed with BPPV and osteoporosis. The recurrence of BPPV and changes in bone mineral densitometry (BMD) scores were evaluated one year after the administration of intravenous zoledronic acid.
Results We enrolled 101 elderly patients with BPPV and 54 of them (53.5%) met the diagnostic criteria for osteoporosis. Intravenous zoledronic acid was administered in 51 patients. The recurrence of BPPV was observed in only two of 49 patients (4.1%) at 1 year’s follow-up. The mean lowest T-score of BMD improved from –3.23±0.51 to –3.05±0.58 (p=0.001).
Conclusions Our study showed that the treatment of osteoporosis can be considered to prevent the recurrence of BPPV in the elderly. Further placebo-controlled studies are needed to estimate accurately the efficacy of zoledronic acid in the prevention of recurrence of BPPV in the elderly.
A 57-year-old woman presented with sudden onset of whirling vertigo associated with nausea and vomiting. The neurological examination showed left-beating horizontal nystagmus on the lying-down test and right-beating horizontal nystagmus on the head bending test. Geotropic direction-changing horizontal nystagmus was demonstrated on both sides during the supine roll test. Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) was the most common vestibular disorder in patients after head trauma. The authors experienced a case of right horizontal canal BPPV occurred after a yoga practice, thereby we report the case with a review of the related literatures.
Objectives The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical manifestations and significance of pseudo-spontaneous nystagmus (PSN) and head-shaking nystagmus (HSN) in horizontal canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (HC-BPPV). Methods: Two hundred fifty-two patients diagnosed as HC-BPPV were reviewed retrospectively. After excluding 55 patients with ipsilateral vestibular diseases, multiple canal BPPV, or those who were lost to follow-up, we analyzed the direction of PSN and HSN in patients with HC-BPPV. We also compared the clinical characteristics and treatment outcome between PSN-positive and PSN-negative groups. Results: Our study included 197 patients composed of 80 patients with geotropic HC-BPPV and 117 patients with apogeotropic HC-BPPV. PSN was observed in 13.7% patients and HSN was observed in 45.2%. The incidence of HSN was higher in apogeotropic HC-BPPV, while the proportion of PSN was not statistically significant between the two subtypes. There was no directional preponderance in geotropic HC-BPPV, while ipsilesional PSN and contralesional HSN showed higher incidence in apogeotropic HC-BPPV. The dizziness handicap inventory score in the PSN-positive group was higher than that in the PSN-negative group (p<0.001), and the duration of symptom onset in the PSN-positive group was shorter than that in the PSN-negative group (p=0.047). However, there was no significant difference in the treatment outcome between the two groups. Conclusions: The incidence of HSN was higher than that of PSN in patients with apogeotropic HC-BPPV. Patients with HC-BPPV showing PSN demonstrated more severe initial symptoms and visited the hospital in a shorter period of time after the onset of symptoms.
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Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: Diagnostic Criteria and Updated Practice Guideline in Diagnosis Dae Bo Shim Research in Vestibular Science.2020; 19(4): 111. CrossRef
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common peripheral vestibular disorder. It is easily cured with canal repositioning maneuvers, but some patients are resistant to the repositioning maneuver and require surgical intervention. Labyrinthitis ossificans is the pathologic condition that fibrous tissue and new bone occupy the membranous labyrinthine space. It occurs as a sequela of inner ear inflammation resulting from diverse causes, mostly bacterial meningitis and otitis media. We describe here a 42-year-old female patient with refractory posterior semicircular canal (PSCC) BPPV and adhesive otitis media in same ear. Otoscopic examination revealed adhesive tympanic membrane without middle ear space and temporal bone computed tomography showed complete ossification of the labyrinth at the same side. We performed a canal wall down mastoidectomy and PSCC occlusion. The patient had complete resolution of paroxysmal vertigo and positional nystagmus, postoperatively.
Case history of a 67-year-old man diagnosed with posterior benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) with extremely long latencies after holding the Dix-Hallpike position for five minutes. Additional vestibular assessment indicated partial unilateral hypofunction. The patient had a history compatible with classic BPPV. This patient, however, did not have any positional nystagmus after doing standard positional testing. With extremely prolonged Dix-Hallpike testing (five minutes), the patient experienced nausea and vertigo. Concomitantly classic peripheral nystagmus was observed. After a total of seventeen treatments in a reposition chair a total relief of symptoms was obtained. The extremely long latencies observed in this patient were ascribed to otoconial adherence and/or otoconial size. This type of BPPV has not previously been described.
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Upbeat and Direction-Changing Torsional Nystagmus While Straight Head Hanging: A New Sign of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo Involving Bilateral Posterior Semicircular Canals Hyun-Jae Kim, Sang Jin Park, Ji-Soo Kim Journal of Clinical Neurology.2024; 20(1): 100. CrossRef
Objectives Recently there was hypothesis that relates the otolith dysfunction to the recurrence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). Therefore in the present study, we assessed relationship between cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP) and BPPV recurrence and raise the possibility of cVEMP as a recurrence indicator of BPPV. Methods: A retrospective review of patient from November 2009 to June 2014 was carried out. Ninety-four patients who suffered from BPPV were enrolled. Medical record review and telephone survey was done to check BPPV recurrence. Results: In medical record review, normal cVEMP group showed 18.9% recurrence rate and abnormal cVEMP group showed 25%. In telephone survey, normal cVEMP group showed 39.19% recurrence rate and abnormal cVEMP group showed 60%. There was no significant statistical difference. Conclusions: cVEMP abnormality was not a risk factor of BPPV recurrence. Further study with larger number of enrolled subjects is necessary.
Horizontal canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (HC-BPPV) can be classified as either the geotropic or apogeotropic subtype by the pattern of nystagmus triggered by supine head roll test. Most studies have reported the geotropic subtype as a more common pathophysiology in HC-BPPV than the apogeotropic subtype. According to the BPPV clinical practice guideline provided by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and American Academy of Neurology in 2008, variations of the roll maneuver (Lempert maneuver of barbecue roll maneuver) are the most widely published treatments for HC-BPPV. In addition, various treatment techniques including Gufoni maneuver, Vannuchi-Asprella liberatory maneuver and forced prolonged positioning have been applied for HC-BPPV. However, the guideline failed to provide specific treatment guidelines for HC-BPPV based on evidence-based researches since only Class IV data on HC-BPPV treatment were available at the point of 2008 when the BPPV clinical practice guideline was published. This review article focused on the evidences of the efficacy of various maneuvers in the treatment of HC-BPPV published after the BPPV clinical practice guidelines of 2008.
Benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo (BPPV) is the most common disease that causes dizziness which is usually resolved spontaneously or by office-based physical therapy.
However, clinicians sometimes encounter atypical or intractable BPPV cases which show poor effect with physical therapy including canalith reposition therapy and liberative maneuvers and frequent recurrence. There is no common definition, diagnosis and treatment protocols for intractable BPPV. Various types of intractable BPPV and reported treatment methods are discussed in this review.