Why Treat Apogeotropic BPPVs of the Horizontal Canal? About 30 Observations

Abstract

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), of the horizontal canal, in the apogeotropic form (AHBPPV) was described in 1995. Based on 30 observations of typical AHBPPVs of the horizontal canal, we endeavor to discuss the relevance of physiotherapy.Material and Method.Thirty observations of typical apogeotropic BPPVs of the horizontal canal treated with a 360°barbeque rotation on the BPPV side, reviewed in consultation at 1 and 3 weeks and reevaluated the following year.Results.Our cohort of 30 patients had an average age of 58.6 years. The apogeotropic BPPVs of the horizontal canal, which can be transformed into BPPVs of the posterior canal or into geotropic-type BPPVs of the horizontal canal do not recover more quickly. Patients who follow the positional advice do not recover more quickly than those who do not (P  =  0.152). The 15 patients treated on average 13.73 days after the onset of the disease did not recover more quickly after the start of therapeutic treatment than those treated later (P  =  0.032).Conclusion.Here, we demonstrate that the direction of rotation during the maneuvers is of no importance for the results. We show that transformability is not a guarantee of rapid recovery and that the therapist’s effectiveness is limited when it comes to the short-term results.