An interventional study of Epley Maneuver and Sham maneuver in Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), sponsored by American University of Beirut Medical Center. Recruiting at 1 site in Lebanon. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-05-11.
Sponsored by American University of Beirut Medical Center · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the efficacy of the Epley maneuver versus a sham maneuver in treating patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with BPPV. The main questions that the study aims to answer are:
Researchers will compare the Epley maneuver arm to the sham maneuver arm to see if the Epley maneuver is more effective in reducing BPPV symptoms.
Participants will:
75 studies on the registry are indexed under Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo; 15 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 118 is above the median of 78 across 62 interventional studies indexed under Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo.
Browse Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo studies →American University of Beirut Medical Center is the lead sponsor of 158 studies on the registry; 24 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
Inclusion Criteria
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
The patient's head is turned 45 degrees towards the side that caused the most nystagmus or reproduced their initial symptoms. The patient is then laid down with their head hanging over the edge of the bed. After that, the head will be rotated 90 degrees in the opposite direction, with the head remaining in a dependent position. The patient is then asked to roll onto their side with their head facing downward. They are then brought back to a sitting position and the head is moved forward 45 degrees. Each position is held until the vertigo and/or nystagmus subsides or for at least 30 seconds
Procedure: Epley Maneuver
This maneuver will involve coordinated movements of the hands and legs, while excluding any head movement. Patients will be at first in a sitting position with both feet on the ground and both hands placed on the thighs and then they will be asked to lift both hands off the thighs, keeping the arms extended. They will then be asked to return to their initial upright sitting position. Patients will then raise their right foot off the ground while keeping the left one planted on the ground. It will be an alternating movement between lifting the right and left feet while maintaining a smooth and well-controlled rhythm for 90 seconds.
Procedure: Sham maneuver
The patient's head is turned 45 degrees towards the side that caused the most nystagmus or reproduced their initial symptoms. The patient is then laid down with their head hanging over the edge of the bed. After that, the head will be rotated 90 degrees in the opposite direction, with the head remaining in a dependent position. The patient is then asked to roll onto their side with their head facing downward. They are then brought back to a sitting position and the head is moved forward 45 degrees. Each position is held until the vertigo and/or nystagmus subsides or for at least 30 seconds
This control maneuver will involve coordinated movements of the hands and legs, while excluding any head movement. Patients will be at first in a sitting position with both feet on the ground and both hands placed on the thighs and then they will be asked to lift both hands off the thighs, keeping the arms extended. They will then be asked to return to their initial upright sitting position. Patients will then raise their right foot off the ground while keeping the left one planted on the ground. It will be an alternating movement between lifting the right and left feet while maintaining a smooth and well- controlled rhythm for 90 seconds.
Efficacy of Epley
The study will compare the average Dizziness Handicap Inventory score change from baseline to day 3 between the Epley maneuver group and the sham maneuver group. The DHI is a 25-item self-administered questionnaire designed to assess the effects of dizziness on various aspects of life, including functional, emotional, and physical domains. Scores range from 0, indicating no disability, to 100, representing severe disability. This scale enables patients to indicate how much dizziness interferes with their daily activities. A higher score reflects a greater perceived handicap caused by dizziness.
Time frame: 3 days
Immediate response of patients
The severity of vertigo will be evaluated using both a 0 to 10-point Likert scale before and after applying the Epley/Sham maneuver.
Time frame: 15-30 minutes after intervention
Rate of bounce-back to the ED
Calculate the proportion of patients in each arm of the study who return to the ED.
Time frame: 3 days
Proportion of patients unable to undergo the full Epley maneuver
The percentage of patients who agreed to participate but could not complete the Epley maneuver due to the severity of their symptoms.
Time frame: 15 minutes
Started Aug 2024 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Jul 2026, 23 months after the start.
Of 38 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, half reached primary completion within 18 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 8 and three quarters within 26. This study's planned 23 months is above that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 39 studies reached it within 16 months; a quarter within 8 and three quarters within 26.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
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