The International Tinnitus Journal

Role of Intratympanic Dexamethasone for Intractable Posterior Canal Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

Background: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is a frequent diagnosed disorder, most of the patients are successfully treated with reposition maneuvers. In between 3-12.5% of these patients remain symptomatic. Recent studies support the use of intratympanic corticosteroid for intracta-ble vertigo with promising results

Material and methods: Patients diagnosed with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo between June 2017 and December 2019 in a tertiary university hospital and in two private hospitals were included in the study and analyzed prospectively. They were treated and followed with reposi-tioning maneuvers and intratympanic dexamethasone injections if the criteria was met.

Results: 4 out 72 patients included in the study developed criteria for intractable vertigo after at least 6 repositioning maneuvers. The posterior semicircular canal was affected in all cases, 3 out of 4 patients experienced symptom resolution, after two, four and five intratympanic dexametha-sone injections respectively.

Conclusions: The use of intratympanic steroids to treat patients with refractory benign paroxysmal positional vertigo showed encouraging results. We consider a multicenter randomized clinical trial should be performed to assess the efficacy of intratympanic steroids in the treatment of this pathology