The inner-ear form of vertigo affects about 64 people in every 100,000. It is most common in people over age 50 and occurs twice as often in women. Simple exercises performed at home may help patients with vertigo find relief, say researchers according to a new study.
Researchers studied 70 patients who had a form of vertigo caused by loose particles floating in the inner ear canal. Participants reported experiencing episodes of nausea or a feeling of spinning when they moved their heads a certain way. Their vertigo symptoms lasted an average of eight weeks.Patients were instructed to perform exercises at home three times a day. Half of the participants performed an exercise called the modified Epley’s procedure, while the other half performed the modified Semont maneuver. Both exercises require patients to perform head and body movements to clear particles from the ear canal. The latter requires more extreme whole body movement.
Results reviewed, after one week showed, 95 percent of patients who performed the modified Epley’s procedure reported no symptoms of vertigo. Nearly 60 percent of those who performed the modified Semont maneuver said they were symptom-free.
Specialists conclude saying that, BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) is caused by loose particles derived from the utricular macula that are free-floating ... Until recurrences can be prevented, self-treatment for BPPV using particle repositioning is likely to become part of the routine management for this condition.
