Rehab

PT used in treatment of vertigo

Rehab Regs, September 9, 2005

Sufferers of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) have turned to physical therapy to help alleviate the dizziness brought on by the condition, reports the Asbury (NJ) Park Press. Robin Pflieger, owner of the Dizziness and Balance Center in Lakewood, NJ, told the Press that treatment for BPPV is becoming more common at her center, and in most cases physical therapy can reduce the vertigo drastically within a week. Pflieger says she uses the Epley Maneuver for patients who have BPPV, which is brought on by trauma to the inner ear that causes "ear rocks" to become dislodged into the fluid of one of the semicircular canals of the ear. The Epley Maneuver is a series of sequential head maneuvers in four positions to dislodge "ear rocks" out of the canal. Pflieger says there are other therapies available that physical therapists should look into to help with this immobilizing condition so patients do not have to undergo surgery.

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