Background: It has been reported that head-up sleep (HUS) prevents free-floating otoliths from entering canals and that vertical recognition training (VRT) promotes vestibular compensation.Aims/objectives: We would like to assess HUS and VRT for intractable motion-evoked dizziness, including possible benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).Materials and methods: 162 patients diagnosed with intractable motion-evoked dizziness of unknown origin were enrolled and randomly divided into the following four groups: HUS-/VRT-, HUS+/VRT-, HUS-/VRT+, and HUS+/VRT+. The at-home interventions comprised HUS with an upper head position of 45° when lying down and VRT with a right down-left down 30° head inclination while watching the vertical index.Results: At the post-treatment 6th month, visual analogue scale (VAS) scores for vertiginous sensation were significantly lower in the HUS+/VRT + group than in the HUS+/VRT - and HUS-/VRT + groups, which were in turn significantly lower than those in the HUS-/VRT - group. VAS scores in the HUS-/VRT + group of patients with abnormal subjective visual vertical (SVV) were significantly lower than those in the HUS+/VRT - group, while those in the HUS+/VRT - group of patients with normal SVV were significantly lower than those in the HUS-/VRT + group.Conclusions: HUS and/or VRT is a good initial treatment for patients with intractable undiagnosed motion-evoked dizziness, including possible BPPV.
Keywords: Unknown origin; head-up sleep; no obvious nystagmus; possible BPPV; subjective visual vertical; undiagnosed; vertical recognition training.