Comorbid psychiatric conditions of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

BACKGROUND No studies have assessed psychopathology among benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) patients. The General Health Questionnaire allows for distinguishing patients suffering from psychiatric problems from those in good mental health. OBJECTIVE To assess the psychiatric illness in Saudi patients with BPPV. METHODS The study was cross-sectional in nature. Institutional ethics committee approval and individual informed consent from study participants were obtained. Fifty patients with BPPV with unknown psychiatric illness were given the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) questionnaire to complete. RESULTS Complete data were available for 50 patients. Thirty patients (60%) with BPPV scored above the conventional threshold. Their subgroups were: somatic complaints 28%, anxiety and insomnia 28%, social dysfunction 34%, and severe depression 10%. CONCLUSIONS Greater attention needs to be paid to BPPV patients. Vulnerable female patients may have high levels of psychiatric symptomatology that may benefit from assessment and intervention.