In 1980, the Vestibular Disorders Research Committee of Japan, which is supported by the Minitsry of Health and Welfare, was founded by 24 doctors, from several districts of Japan. First, the Committee drated the diagnostic criteria for several peripheral vestibular disorders, such as benign paroxysmal vertigo, vestibular neuronitis, bilateral loss of labyrinthine function, inner ear syphilis. In an epidemiological survey, 783, cases of vestibular disorders were collected by the Committee members.
This second report describes a comparative survey of the monthly incidence of vertigo, equilibrium disturbance, and vestibular disorders (including pathological types and classification of symptoms) among outpatients visiting the same clinics for the first time in 1982 and 1983.
There was no appraciable difference between the two surverys in terms of the total number of outpatients affected by vestibular disturbances, but these were some insignificant variations in some of the factors examined.
When we have stabilized the incidense of the various pathological types of diseases by further surveys, we will perform an epidemiological survey which includes the contemporary incidence and compares it with the results of previous surveys.