The Relationship Between Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo and Vitamin D

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Endocrinology
• Otolaryngology

Background:

• Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is a common cause of vertigo characterized by brief, severe attacks triggered by specific head and body positions.
• Emerging research suggests a correlation between vitamin D deficiency and the occurrence of BPPV, potentially linked to theories of cupulolithiasis and canalithiasis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate serum vitamin D levels in patients diagnosed with BPPV compared to a healthy control group.
• To determine if vitamin D levels influence the prevalence of different BPPV subtypes.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 258 BPPV patients and 100 healthy controls underwent detailed ear-nose-throat and neurology examinations.
• Serum vitamin D levels were measured and compared between the BPPV and control groups.
• BPPV patients were sub-categorized based on vitamin D levels (20-30 ng/ml vs. <20 ng/ml) to analyze vertigo subtype ratios.

Main Results:

• The BPPV group (187 females, 71 males; mean age 43.70 ± 15.44) exhibited significantly lower mean vitamin D levels (females: 18.42 ± 5.07 ng/ml; males: 19.82 ± 5.11 ng/ml) compared to the control group (65 females, 35 males; mean age 44.63 ± 15.42; vitamin D levels: 30.88 ± 10.74 ng/ml).
• Statistical analysis confirmed a significant difference in vitamin D levels between the BPPV patients and healthy controls.
• No significant association was found between vitamin D levels and the distribution of vertigo subtypes in BPPV patients.

Conclusions:

• Vitamin D deficiency is statistically significantly associated with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo.
• Vitamin D levels do not appear to be a determining factor in the specific subtypes of BPPV observed in this study.