Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo [BPPV] is typically a very sudden onset of dizziness, which settles rapidly after a few seconds or at most a couple of minutes.

It is often started off by the person suddenly looking upwards or sideways, and some people get it when they turn over in bed. In between attacks, the sufferer feels entirely normal. It is probably caused by a little piece of lining coming loose in the inner ear and floating into the balance receptor, causing a sudden increase in nerve stimulus to the brain.

Sometimes the attacks start following a whiplash injury or other head injury, but often there appears to be no reason that they should have started. The attacks usually disappear with time.

Mr. Dhanasekar will do a test in the clinic to confirm or exclude the diagnosis of positional vertigo. If the test is positive he will then do a manoeuvre called the Epley manoeuvre during the same consultation which usually settles the symptoms of positional vertigo.