The Epley maneuver is an exercise performed to treat a type of vertigo called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is caused by a problem in the inner ear. Information technology is oftentimes associated with crumbling, but caput injuries can too crusade information technology.

The Epley maneuver can be carried out past a doctor or at home by the private experiencing BPPV to relieve symptoms.

This article provides a step-past-step guide to the Epley maneuver and examines how the treatment works.

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The purpose of the Epley maneuver is to dislodge crystals in the ear that may be affecting residue.

The Epley maneuver is a series of movements, normally carried out on a person by a doctor, to relieve the symptoms of BPPV. Inquiry has found it to be an easy, safe, and effective treatment for the condition in both the long- and short-term.

The Epley maneuver is sometimes chosen the particle repositioning maneuver or the canalith repositioning maneuver.

These names are used because the maneuver involves a series of movements that help to reposition crystals in a person'due south ear that may cause feelings of dizziness. Repositioning the crystals helps to relieve the person's dizziness and nausea.

A dr. doing the Epley maneuver volition manually move a person into a serial of positions. It can besides exist done at home past the person experiencing the BPPV symptoms. The steps for both versions are detailed below.

Steps of the Epley maneuver carried out by a md

When a doctor carries out the Epley maneuver, they will perform the following steps:

  1. Ask the person to sit down upright on an test table, fully extending their legs out in front of them.
  2. Rotate the person's caput at a 45-degree bending towards the side they are experiencing the worst vertigo.
  3. Quickly push the person back, so that they are lying down with their shoulders touching the table. The person's head is kept facing the side worst affected past vertigo but at present at a 30-degree angle, so that it is lifted slightly off the tabular array. The doctor holds the person in this position for between xxx seconds and 2 minutes, until their dizziness stops.
  4. Rotate the person's head 90 degrees in the reverse management, stopping when the opposite ear is 30 degrees away from the table. Once more, the md holds the person in this position for betwixt 30 seconds and 2 minutes, until their dizziness stops.
  5. Next, they coil the person in the same direction that they are facing, onto their side. The side that they experience the worst vertigo on will be facing upwards. The doctor holds the person in this position for betwixt 30 seconds and 2 minutes, until their dizziness stops.
  6. Finally, the doctor brings the person dorsum up to a sitting position.
  7. The whole process is repeated up to iii times, until the person'southward symptoms are relieved.

Steps of the Epley maneuver carried out at home

It is best for a physician to carry out the Epley maneuver if the person experiencing BPPV has not used this method before.

Once a person has had the Epley maneuver performed by a doctor, they may want to echo the process at domicile if they have further symptoms.

A person experiencing BPPV symptoms tin follow these steps to gain relief at home:

  1. Sit upwardly in bed with the legs extended in front of them and turn their caput 45 degrees to the side that they are experiencing the near dizziness.
  2. Prevarication down, keeping their head turned to the side and lifted at a xxx-caste angle away from the bed. They should stay in this position for 30 seconds to two minutes, until their dizziness stops.
  3. They should so plough their head ninety degrees in the other direction and terminate when it is 30 degrees from the bed on the other side. Again, the person should hold this position for 30 seconds to 2 minutes, until their dizziness stops.
  4. They should now roll onto their side in the direction their head is facing, property this position until the dizziness stops.

A doctor will apply the Epley maneuver to help save a person's dizziness and nausea when they have decided that BPPV is the cause.

The Epley maneuver is not suitable to treat vertigo caused by something other than BPPV. If a person is unsure what is causing their vertigo, they should speak to a doctor and enquire to exist examined.

Other causes of vertigo include:

  • migraines
  • ear infections
  • anemia
  • cerebellar stroke

Having been shown the Epley maneuver by a doctor, someone with BPPV can repeat it themselves at dwelling whenever they need to save their symptoms.

People often find information technology is useful to do the Epley maneuver before going to bed, as tossing and turning tin trigger symptoms.

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Dizziness, nausea, and vision problems are all potential symptoms of BPPV.

BPPV is a mutual type of vertigo that has been institute to account for up to 17 percent of cases of dizziness.

It is acquired by a problem in the inner ear. Small crystals called canaliths become loose in the inner ear. They can terminate up in the semicircular canals of the ear.

When these crystals move around, they cause fluid in the ear to be displaced. This results in a spinning awareness when a person moves their caput to a different position. This spinning sensation is unremarkably referred to as vertigo.

The symptoms of BPPV come on quickly when a person with the condition moves their caput. For example, symptoms can be triggered when turning over during the night.

Symptoms tin can final anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes, and include:

  • dizziness
  • nausea
  • visual disturbances

The Epley maneuver is designed to put the head at an angle from where gravity tin can help relieve symptoms.

Tilting the head can movement the crystals out of the semicircular canals of the ear. This means that they cease displacing fluid, relieving the dizziness and nausea this was causing.

In this style, the Epley maneuver relieves the symptoms of BPPV. However, information technology may need to be repeated more than one time, as sometimes movements can dislodge the crystals after initial handling.

After performing the Epley maneuver, a medico will advise a person with BPPV to avert movements that could dislodge the crystals. These movements include:

  • bending over rapidly
  • lying down rapidly
  • tilting the head
  • moving the head back and forth

The dr. may recommend that a person wears a soft neckband to assist them avert making these movements. They may likewise be advised to sleep on two or three pillows so that their head is lifted at a 45-caste angle.

Although it may need to exist repeated more than once, the Epley maneuver is effective in treating over 90 percentage of people. Research has shown that there are no agin effects from this treatment.

In the rare issue that this handling does not relieve BPPV symptoms, surgery on the ear canal may be a prophylactic and effective option.