Lee DH, Shin JE, Jung T, Kim CH. Change in Diagnosis of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo During COVID-19 Pandemic.
Int J Gen Med 2022;
15:7029-7037. [PMID:
36090705 PMCID:
PMC9462836 DOI:
10.2147/ijgm.s378822]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose
The present study investigated the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).
Patients and Methods
The medical records of BPPV patients who were evaluated in the outpatient department (OPD) and emergency room (ER) during (435 patients) and before (517 patients) the COVID-19 pandemic were retrospectively reviewed. Dix-Hallpike and supine head-roll tests were used to classify the subtype of BPPV as posterior semicircular canal (PSCC), geotropic lateral semicircular canal (geotropic LSCC), or apogeotropic lateral semicircular canal (apogeotropic LSCC) BPPV.
Results
More patients with PSCC BPPV were diagnosed at the OPD compared with those who were diagnosed at the ER both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, more patients with LSCC BPPV were diagnosed at the ER compared with those who were diagnosed at the OPD during the same periods. The mean time interval between vertigo onset and initial evaluation was remarkably longer during the pandemic in patients with PSCC BPPV.
Conclusion
This study demonstrated that the incidences of BPPV subtypes according to hospital visit type were not significantly different before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Because hospital visits were delayed in patients with PSCC BPPV during the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine or e-health could be suitable alternatives to face-to-face medical care for these patients.
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