Bening Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo:pathophysiology, Evaluation and Diagnosis

Abstract

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), is one of the most common vestibular disorders. The majority of patients with positioning vertigo with BPPV that affects either the posterior (PC-BPPV) or the horizontal (HSC-BPPV).There is evidence that anterior canal BPPV (AC-BPPV) is the least common type of BPPV. The cupulolithiasis and canalithiasis pathophysiologic mechanisms continue to be the two primary theories explaining BPPV. There are several maneuvers that have been designed to evaluate each semicircular canals. Although the prevalence, pathophysiology, clinical presentation and diagnostic criteria are well known, yet the condition often goes undiagnosed or is treated inappropriately. In this review, we have provided the classification, prevalence, pathophysiologic mechanisms, evaluation techniques and diagnostic criteria of BPPV.