title: Effect of Epley's maneuver on the quality of life of paroxismal positional benign vertigo patients.
abstract: Quality of life (QoL) is significantly impaired by vertigo. The effect of specific treatments on QoL deserves investigation.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the effect of repositioning maneuvers on the QoL of benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo (BPPV) patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective study design consiting of reviews of charts of BPPV patients in a vestibular rehabilitation unit at a teaching institution in Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil, from 2007 to 2008. Pre- and post-therapy (Epley's repositioning maneuver) scores on the physical, functional and emotional dimensions of the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-one patients were included, eighteen (86%) were females; the average age was 53.2 years. Ten patients presented bilateral BPPV; in eleven it was unilateral. The mean interval between assessments (pre- and post-treatment) was 21 days. The average number of required maneuvers was 2.3 (±1.1). Pre-treatment DHI results showed a significant impact of BPPV on quality of life. Initial scores for physical (17.5), functional (17.3), emotional (13.2) dimensions decreased with therapy: respectively 3.7, 3.9, and 3.2 (p<0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the present sample, Epley's maneuver had a positive and significant effect on emotional, physical and functional dimensions of quality of life, as measured by the DHI scores before and after therapy.
authors.affiliation: Entrepreneurial Management Center, Hospital Foundation for the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alcione Botelho
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.forename: Juliana Nunes
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Fernando Madalena
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Volpe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil; D004244:Dizziness / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D019416:Head Movements; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D056888:Patient Positioning / Q000379:methods*; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014717:Vertigo / Q000628:therapy*