Unilateral mimicking bilateral BPPV- a forgotten entity? Characteristics of a large cohort of patients, comparison with posterior canal BPPV and clinical implications

Lea Pollak; Ronit Gilad; Tal Michael

doi:10.1016/j.joto.2021.06.002

Unilateral mimicking bilateral BPPV- a forgotten entity? Characteristics of a large cohort of patients, comparison with posterior canal BPPV and clinical implications

J Otol. 2021 Oct;16(4):252-257. doi: 10.1016/j.joto.2021.06.002. Epub 2021 Jun 20.

Authors

Lea Pollak¹, Ronit Gilad², Tal Michael³

Affiliations

¹ Neurology and Dizziness Clinic, Kupat Cholim Macabi and the Ben Gurion, University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel.
² Neurology Department, Kaplan Medical Center, Rechovot, Affiliated to the Hebrew, University, Jerusalem, Israel.
³ The Faculty of Health Public, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer, Sheva, Israel.

Abstract

Objective: Unilateral mimicking bilateral benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (umb-BPPV) was attributed to inappropriate head positioning during testing of the posterior canal. Despite its inclusion in the Diagnostic criteria for the classification of vestibular disorders of the Bárány Society, the clinical characteristics and treatment responsiveness of this BPPV subtype have not been intensively studied.

Methods: Records of patients with BPPV seen at a single outpatient dizziness clinic during the years 2000-2020 were reviewed. Eighty seven patients with umb-BPPV and 86 random patients with posterior canal BPPV (p-BPPV) were retrieved. Their demographics and BPPV characteristics were analyzed.

Results: Patients' and BPPV characteristics were similar in umb- and p-BPPV except for the prevalence of males in the umb-BPPV group. No differences were found between treatment responsiveness and recurrences in both groups. The recurrence rate of umb-BPPV was not influenced by age, gender, BPPV side, duration of symptoms or treatment responsiveness during the first attack.

Conclusions: In accordance with our hypothesis about mixed canalo- and cupulolithiasis as the underlying mechanism of umb-BPPV, patients did not differ in characteristics and treatment responsiveness from p-BPPV patients. Recognition of umb-BPPV is important since inappropriate treatment can cause an unnecessary delay in therapy success.

Keywords: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo; Canalo- and cupulolithiasis.