Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo after stapedectomy.

OBJECTIVE To determine the incidence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) following stapedectomy in a patient group and the efficacy of the Epley maneuver in this group. STUDY DESIGN Prospective study in a university-based tertiary referral system. METHODS The patient group comprised 63 patients who had undergone stapedectomy; a control group consisted of normal healthy individuals with no otolaryngological complaints. All individuals underwent the Dix-Hallpike maneuver for the diagnosis of BPPV. Patients who exhibited vertigo, torsional nystagmus (which reverses its direction on return to sitting position) preceded by a latent period, and the fatigability of these findings were considered to have BPPV. If the test result was positive, they underwent the Epley therapeutic maneuver. RESULTS Four of the patients who had undergone a stapedectomy showed characteristic findings of BPPV. No individual in the control group had BPPV. All patients responded well to the Epley maneuver. CONCLUSIONS Stapedectomy may be regarded as an etiological factor in BPPV. Because the fenestra is located in the posterior part of the stapes footplate, the pathophysiology appears to be related to utricular rather than saccular trauma. Correct measurement of the distance between the incus and stapes footplate is essential in stapedectomy. An Internet survey of the relevant literature in English shows a scarcity of publications on the incidence of BPPV following stapedectomy. In the present study, 63 patients who had undergone a stapedectomy were investigated for the presence of BPPV; all had Dix-Hallpike maneuvers performed for the diagnosis. Sixty-three individuals with no otolaryngological complaints made up the control group. Four of the patients who had undergone stapedectomy showed characteristic findings of BPPV, and no individual in the control group had BPPV; the difference between the two groups was statistically significant. All four of the patients diagnosed with BPPV responded well to the Epley maneuver. The pathophysiology appears to be related to utricular trauma. Correct measurement of the distance between the incus and stapes footplate is essential in stapedectomy.