Online Videos May Help Vertigo Patients

Accurate video demonstration of the Epley maneuver (EM) is widely viewed on the video sharing site YouTube and may demonstrate the potential benefits of this media on the dissemination of effective treatment interventions. 

Researchers from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor searched the site for videos depicting the EM, a simple and effective treatment for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo underused in routine care, narrowing the results to 33 videos depicting the maneuver in its entirety.  Of these, 21 were found to be accurate representations.

All together, the videos were viewed 2,755,607 times, with the American Academy of Neurology's EM demonstration video accounting for 802,471 views alone.

Researchers reviewed the 424 comments posted on the videos, finding the majority of which had been written by patients using the videos for self-treatment and providers who used the videos for prescribed treatment or education. 

"Accurate video demonstration of the Epley maneuver is available and widely viewed on YouTube," researchers concluded. "Video-sharing media may be an important way to disseminate effective interventions such as the Epley maneuver. The impact of video websites on outcomes and costs of care is not known and warrants future study."

-Michael Potts