Serum Vitamin D and Long-term Outcomes of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of serum vitamin D concentrations on the longterm recurrence rates of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) patients. METHODS: The present study was conducted with patients diagnosed with BPPV from June 2014 to April 2016. Whether the patients’ sex, age, types and locations of semicircular canals, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and vitamin D concentrations affect their recurrence rates was examined using Pearson chi-square tests, independent samples t-tests and Cox proportional hazards regression analyses. The effects of vitamin D concentrations on long-term recurrence rates were examined using Kaplan-Meier estimates and log-rank tests. RESULTS: The recurrence rates obtained with Kaplan-Meier estimates were 18% and 50% at 12 months and 24 months, respectively. When the patients were divided into groups with vitamin D concentrations of <10 ng/mL and ≥10 ng/mL and the recurrence rates of the groups were compared, the difference was statistically significant (P=0.040). In addition, when the patients were divided into groups with vitamin D concentrations of <15 ng/mL and ≥15 ng/mL and the recurrence rates of the groups were compared, the difference was statistically quite significant (P=0.017). In a Cox regression model, variables such as age, sex, the types and locations of semicircular canals, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and 25-hydroxy vitamin D did not significantly affect recurrence. CONCLUSION: The present study investigated the recurrence rates of BPPV in patients for a long time without limiting the sex, age, or locations of semicircular canals and it could be seen that serum vitamin D concentrations significantly affected the recurrence of BPPV.