Otolin-1 as a biomarker for the evaluation of the effectiveness of betahistine treatment for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo

Abstract

Objective Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common vertigo disorder. Betahistine is the most commonly used drug in the treatment of vertigo, however its effect on the inner ear is not fully known. Otolin-1 is an inner ear-specific glycoprotein that can be identified in peripheral blood. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of treatment of betahistine for BPPV on serum otolin-1 levels. Methods Thirty (30) patients with BPPV and 30 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. Serum otolin-1 levels were measured before and 14 days after perioral (po) betahistine treatment in the BPPV group, whereas otolin-1 level was examined once in controls. The efficacy of treatment was evaluated with Dizziness Handicap Index (DHI) and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) in the BPPV group. Results Otolin-1 levels were statistically significantly higher in patients with BPPV than controls. In the BPPV group, serum otolin-1 level was found to be statistically significantly lower after betahistine treatment. There was a statistically significantly difference between pre-treatment and posttreatment groups regarding to both DHI and VAS scores. Conclusion Serum otolin-1 can be used as a biomarker in monitoring the effectiveness of treatment of BPPV with betahistine as well as diagnosis of BPPV.