Disability in Protracted Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo at One Month from Symptom Onset- a Questionnaire Survey

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the disability of patients with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) at one month from symptom onset. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at multiple institutions. One hundred and seventeen BPPV patients at one month from symptom onset were included (32 male, 85 female; mean age 67.7 years). After answering whether their symptoms were cured or persistent, patients completed 3 questionnaires: the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), The Vertigo Symptom Scale-Short Form (VSS-sf) to assess the frequency of vestibular and autonomic symptoms, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The presence of nystagmus and type of BPPV were also checked. and 62 (53.0%) reported persistent symptoms (protracted). Among the protracted patients, 44 (71.0%) patients had positional/positioning nystagmus while 18 (29.0%) patients did not. The protracted patients with nystagmus showed significantly higher DHI scores in total, physical and functional components compared with the cured patients (p<0.05). The protracted patients without nystagmus showed significantly higher DHI scores in physical components than the cured patients (p<0.05). The protracted patients with/without nystagmus showed significantly higher vestibular symptoms scores in VSS-sf and depressive scores in HADS in comparison with the cured patients (p<0.05). Conclusion: About a half of BPPV patients continue to have dizziness at one month from symptom onset. These patients have higher levels of disability in daily life and feelings of depression.