Treating benign paroxysmal positional vertigo in acute traumatic brain injury: a prospective, randomised clinical trial assessing safety, feasibility, and efficacy.

Background: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) affects approximately half of acute, moderate-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients. To date, there have been no rigorous studies of BPPV assessment or treatment in this cohort. We aimed to determine the safety, practicability, and efficacy of therapist-led BPPV management in acute TBI and the feasibility of a larger effectiveness trial. Methods: This was a multi-centre, three-arm, parallel-groups, randomised, feasibility trial. Recruitment was via convenience sampling. The main inclusion criteria were age over 18 years and a confirmed, non-penetrating, acute TBI. BPPV-positive patients were randomly allocated to one of three interventions (repositioning manoeuvres, Brandt-Daroff exercises or advice) using minimisation criteria. Outcome assessors were blinded to the intervention. Results: Of 2014 patients screened for inclusion, 180 were assessed for BPPV. Of those assessed, 34% (62/180) had BPPV, and 58 patients received an intervention. Therapist-led interventions were delivered safely and accurately according to intervention monitoring criteria. Resolution of BPPV was observed in 35/58 (60%) patients. The resolution rate was highest following repositioning manoeuvres (78%), followed by the advice (53%) and Brandt-Daroff interventions (42%). 10 patients experienced recurrence. This was observed more frequently in those with skull fractures and bilateral or mixed BPPV. Conclusions: Overall, the results provide strong evidence for the feasibility of a future trial. Therapist-led management of BPPV in acute TBI was safe and practicable. Repositioning manoeuvres seemingly yielded a superior treatment effect. However, given the high recurrence rate of post-traumatic BPPV, the optimal time to treat according to patients' specific recurrence risk requires further investigation. Trial registration: ISRCTN91943864, https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN91943864.

Does training therapists to manage benign paroxysmal positional vertigo in patients with acute traumatic brain injury reduce vestibular neurology referrals?

OBJECTIVE: Dizziness is common in patients with acute traumatic brain injury (aTBI). However, patients are not always managed by the ward team but instead are referred to a visiting vestibular neurology team or referred for outpatient follow-up. We aimed to ascertain whether training trauma ward therapists to manage a common form of post-traumatic dizziness (Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo [BPPV]) reduced referrals to a visiting vestibular neurology team. DESIGN: Referrals of patients with aTBI with complaints of dizziness to the visiting vestibular neurology team were audited from the Major Trauma Centre at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK. Ward therapists subsequently received training on management of BPPV. Referrals to the vestibular neurology service were re-audited. Therapist confidence in assessing and treating BPPV was also assessed pre and post-training. RESULTS: Pre-training, referral rate to the visiting vestibular neurology service was eight patients per month. Following training, referrals to the vestibular neurology service reduced by 35%. Therapist confidence improved significantly following training. CONCLUSIONS: Training trauma ward therapists to manage BPPV reduced referrals to a visiting vestibular neurology service. Further research is necessary to assess implications for service and patient level parameters, such as length of stay and time to discharge.

A mixed methods randomised feasibility trial investigating the management of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo in acute traumatic brain injury.

BACKGROUND: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of long-term disability in working age adults. Recent studies show that most acute TBI patients demonstrate vestibular features of dizziness and imbalance, often from combined peripheral and central vestibular dysfunction. Effective treatment for vestibular impairments post-TBI is important given its significant adverse impact upon quality of life and employment prospects. The most frequent peripheral vestibular disorder in acute TBI is benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), affecting approximately half of acute cases. Although there is effective treatment for idiopathic BPPV, there are no high-quality clinical data for post-TBI BPPV regarding its prevalence, natural history, which treatment is most effective and when is the best time to treat. In particular, observational studies suggest post-TBI BPPV may be recurrent, indicating that hyperacute treatment of BPPV may be futile. Given the potential hurdles and the lack of accurate post-TBI BPPV data, the current study was designed to provide information regarding the feasibility and optimal design of future large-scale prospective treatment studies that would compare different interventions and their timing for post-TBI BPPV. METHOD: A multi-centre randomised mixed methods feasibility study design was employed. We aim to recruit approximately 75 acute TBI patients across a range of clinical severities, from three major trauma centres in London. Patients will be randomised to one of three treatment arms: (1) therapist-led manoeuvres, (2) patient-led exercises and (3) advice. Participants will be re-assessed by blinded outcome assessors at 4 and 12 weeks. Acceptability of the intervention will be obtained by patient interviews at the end of their treatment and therapist interviews at the end of the study. Primary outcomes relate to feasibility parameters including recruitment and retention rates, adverse events and intervention fidelity. We will also aim to provide a more accurate estimate of the prevalence of BPPV in TBI cases on the trauma ward. DISCUSSION: The multi-centre nature of our feasibility study will inform the design of a future prospective treatment trial of BPPV in acute TBI. Important parameters we will obtain from this study, key for designing a future prospective treatment study, include estimating the prevalence of BPPV in TBI patients admitted to UK major trauma wards, and elucidating both patient and care-provider barriers in delivering BPPV treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN, ISRCTN91943864. Registered on 10 February 2020.