Thousands 'miss' vertigo treatment

Doctors have a simple test and treatment for BPPV

Thousands of people are going untreated for one of the commonest forms of dizziness and vertigo, because doctors are unaware of how to treat and diagnose it, say experts.

Despite a simple diagnostic test and speedy treatment being available, many doctors fail to spot benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

And this means thousands of people, mainly the elderly, go without treatment for the distressing condition.

Elderly people with the condition are more prone to falls - which could cause disabling fractures.

I saw one patient who had undiagnosed BPPV for over 30 years

Dr Peter West, consultant audiological physician

BPPV is caused by calcium carbonate crystals (octonia) which have moved out of position in the semicircular canals in the inner ear.

Speedy treatment

But experts say the condition can be quickly diagnosed and treatment shows almost immediate results.

The misplaced crystals can easily be moved back into position - some patients even learn to do this themselves.

Dr Peter West, consultant audiological physician, at the Queen Alexandra Hospital, in Portsmouth, sees about six patients a week with BPPV.

Many have been suffering for years with the distressing condition, but after just a couple of minutes Dr West and trained medics like him can cure them.

But he blamed ignorance among the medical profession for many people going undiagnosed. He said medics spend too little time learning about the workings of the ear.

"They simply have now idea how the inner ear works. And they do not know they are ignorant about it. It is as bad as that.

"I saw one patient who had BPPV for over 30 years and her GP had told her there was nothing that could be done.

BPPV is caused by misplaced calcium carbonate crystals in the inner ear

"And I have had four or five patients who have had this for 15 years or more and they have just been told that they have to learn to live with it.

"It is a very important condition in the elderly. Because if they fall and they hurt themselves they could end up in long-stay wards."

Repeat treatments

Dr West said using a simple technique to manipulate the head so that the loose crystals return to their correct position is for many a permanent cure.

"It is just like manoeuvring marbles round a tray in a child's toy."

Others who suffer more episodes of BPPV can have repeat treatments.

American Scientists Ronald Tusa, professor of Neurology and Susan Herdman, also from Emory University School of Medicine, are set to promote the tests at the American Academy of Neurology meeting, in Philadelphia.

They hope that as more doctors learn about the tests, which have been around for over a decade, more people will get the treatment they need.