Routine benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) physiotherapy management: a feasibility study.

This article examines the feasibility of routine physiotherapy management for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) in older subacute inpatients with a history of falls and determines the proportion testing positive for BPPV. In a study of 447 patients aged 50 and over, 67% underwent BPPV assessment, with 6% diagnosed positive; however, assessment was often not feasible due to physical limitations, cognitive impairment, and competing clinical priorities. Physiotherapists found BPPV management acceptable and appropriate but challenging to implement routinely, noting that subjective dizziness symptoms were unreliable indicators of BPPV. The study suggests that the 5-item dizziness handicap inventory (DHI) may help prioritize patients for assessment, highlighting the need for further research on BPPV screening feasibility in cognitively impaired inpatient populations.