The Treatment Evidences in-hospital Group Vestibular Rehabilitation in Patients with Intractable Dizziness(Symposium/Psychosomatic Approach for Dizziness)

Abstract

Objective: In 1996, we developed an in-hospital vestibular-rehabilitation program based on Cawthorne and Cooksey program for patients with intractable dizziness and have since reported improvements of the quality of life after the treatment. This study was aimed to show the benefit of this program with respect to physical and emotional aspects. Methods: The subjects were 161 patients with intractable dizziness and all were informed that hospitalization was a prerequisite for participation in our program. On the day of hospitalization, the inquiries including, the Statetrait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), Profile of Mood States Brief Japanese Version (POMS) were used to evaluate the state of anxiety, depression, physical and emotional and functional handicap with dizziness, profile of mood states, respectively. Short Form Health Survey (SF-8) was used to evaluate the quality of life. The all were performed again after 4 weeks of the treatment. Results: The investigation items (STAI, SDS, DHI, POMS, SF-8 scores) were all significantly improved after the treatment (p<0.05). Conclusion: Improvements in the physical as well as emotional aspects of intractable dizziness patients is achieved by our vestibular rehabilitation program, which included the combination of physical rehabilitation and in group therapy in the hospital. Patients with intractable dizziness improve not only physical aspect but also psychological aspect through our rehabilitation program.