Impacto da fisioterapia no tratamento da vertigem

Abstract

Introduction. Vertigo is a common complaint in the population, but infrequent in physiotherapy services in general, perhaps by the lack of knowledge that physiotherapeutic resources can be used for the origin otoneurological disorders treatment. Objective. To analyze the clinical findings and therapeutic results of two-year experience of a general physiotherapy department treating disorders caused by vertigo. Method. Thirty-three individuals with nonspecific vertigo were treated over the years of 2002 and 2003. Subjective improvement reported by the patient and normal results for clinical test of static and dynamic balance were considered as improvement criteria. The average duration of the treatment in days, as well as the average number of sessions were calculated. Results. Only three patients were Dix-Hallpike maneuver were positive for benign positional paroxysmal vertigo in our sample. The others had cervicogenic vertigo. An average of 12.12 sessions (SD = 6.44) of physiotherapy were required throughout 24.54 days (SD = 16.64) for the patient to be considered treated according to our criteria; however, 19 patients were discharged within a period no longer than 10 days of treatment. Conclusions. The treatment of individuals with vertigo complaints by means of physiotherapy was considered as an effective, efficient and safe resource.