Systematic Review: Efficacy of Gufoni Maneuver for Treatment of Lateral Canal Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo with Geotropic Nystagmus

Abstract

In this rapid systematic review, we studied the efficacy of the Gufoni maneuver for the treatment of lateral canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) with geotropic nystagmus. A comprehensive search, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane as data sources, resulted in 44 original papers for randomized trials that compared the Gufoni maneuver with other maneuvers (date of search: April 23, 2013). Three studies (389 patients) remained after screening of title, abstract, and full text. After method assessment, 2 of these 3 studies were considered to have a low risk of bias and a high level of validity. The third study did not properly report the treatment allocation and blinding; moreover, outcome data were incomplete. The first 2 studies compared the Gufoni maneuver with a sham maneuver (and the barbecue roll in one study). The third study compared the Gufoni maneuver with a treatment with vestibular suppressants and with the barbecue roll (plus forced prolonged positioning). All 3 studies reported short-term results. Midterm results (1 month) were reported in 2 studies. Given the variety in the comparative treatments and follow-up duration, all 3 studies showed that the Gufoni maneuver was more effective than the sham maneuver or treatment with vestibular suppressants. All agreed that the maneuver was easy to perform, which made it suitable for older, immobile, and obese patients. However, there were insufficient data to establish the relative efficacy of the Gufoni maneuver compared with other maneuvers.