Benign recurrent vertigo (BRV) accounts for a high proportion of episodic vestibular syndrome (EVS) patients. To date, randomized controlled trials and guidelines are lacking, and preventive treatment has not been established.ObjectiveIn clinical practice, we have found that sodium valproate has excellent effect on reducing vertigo attacks in BRV patients....
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
Evidence is too preliminary (case series only) to recommend sodium valproate as a standard preventive treatment for benign recurrent vertigo; no change in practice is warranted until controlled trial data are available.
Benign recurrent vertigo lacks an established first-line preventive therapy, so any candidate drug with a plausible mechanism and early positive signal is of interest to vestibular specialists and audiologists managing these patients.
- 01Case series examines sodium valproate (an anti-seizure/migraine drug) as a preventive therapy for benign recurrent vertigo (BRV).
- 02BRV is a common episodic balance disorder without a structural inner-ear cause.
- 03Published in the Journal of Vestibular Research (PMID 42522145); includes a literature review component.
- 04Case series design (Oxford CEBM Level 4) limits the strength of any efficacy conclusions.
- 05No randomised controlled trial or comparator group; findings are exploratory only.
Sodium valproate may have a preventive effect on episodes of benign recurrent vertigo.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42522145
- DOI
- 10.1177/09574271261473595.
- Journal
- Journal of Vestibular Research
- Publication type
- case_report
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Patients with benign recurrent vertigo (episodic vestibular syndrome without structural inner-ear pathology)
- Intervention
- Sodium valproate (prophylactic/preventive use)
Primary outcomes
Frequency or severity of benign recurrent vertigo episodes