BALANCE AND GAIT PERFORMANCE AFTER PARTICLE REPOSITIONING MANEUVER IN BENIGN PAROXYSMAL POSITIONAL VERTIGO PATIENTS

Purpose:  To examine subjective complaints, recurrence, balance, gait before and after Particle Repositioning Maneuver (PRM), and to investigate the comorbid factors as migraine and motion sickness in Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo ( BPPV) patients.  Methods:   Fifty-seven patients were treated with PRM for posterior canal BPPV . The perception of vertigo was estimated with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), gait with Dynamic Gait Index (DGI), balance with the modified Clinical Test of Sensory Integration and Balance (mCTSIB). If Dix-Hallpike test was still positive 1 week after PRM , the maneuver was repeated. When remission was confirmed, patients were recalled after 1 month to repeat all tests. If the patient suffered only from residual dizziness after 1 week, Brandt-Daroff exercises were recommended during 1 month.  Results:  VAS scores of all patients were improved significantly 1 month after PRM (p 0.05). It was found that m igraineurs had more severe imbalance and motion sickness complaints.  Conclusion:  Subjective complaints, balance and gait abilities improved in all patients. The recurrence rate, residual dizziness and motion sickness complaints were higher in migraineurs. The migraineurs had worse balance performance than non-migraineurs before as well as after PRM . Brandt-Daroff exercise didn’t prevent recurrence and residual dizziness.