The Effect of Climate Changes on Incidence of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo; a Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis of 16144 Patients Publisher Pubmed

Summary: Does weather trigger vertigo? Study links BPPV to atmospheric pressure & rainfall, not temperature. #BPPV #ClimateHealth

Sharifi A^{1, 2} ; Steenerson KK³ ; Alyono JC³ ; Ghaffari ME⁴ ; Zojaji M⁵ ; Ghaedsharaf S⁶ ; Salmani MH⁷ ; Kouhi A^{1, 2}
Source: Environmental Research Published:2024

Abstract

Background: There were controversial findings in terms of the association between the incidence of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) and climate changes, so the current systematic review plus meta-analysis is designed to discover this possible relationship. Methods: Web of science, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Embase, and Cochrane library were systematically searched up to August 2023. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) and Problem/Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome (PICO) guidelines were used. Two authors independently reviewed the eligible articles and assessed the quality of them. Results: In total, 15 studies including 16144 patients met the inclusion criteria. Ten studies reported the relation of BPPV to monthly mean temperature, 7 to monthly average humidity, 4 to monthly average rainfall, 6 to monthly sunlight time, and 2 to average solar radiation. The incidence of BPPV was associated significantly with atmospheric pressure (P: 0.003) and rainfall (P: 0.017). However, there was not any statistically significant correlation between incidence of BPPV and humidity, sunlight time, temperature, and solar radiation level (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The incidence of BPPV was higher in cold months of a year in both northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere countries. Although it can be because of negative correlation with temperature, the current meta-analysis did not find any statistically significant negative correlation with temperature. In addition, the incidence of BPPV was associated significantly with atmospheric pressure (positive correlation) and rainfall (negative correlation). © 2024