A life free of vertigo

Elsa Kaiser* feels sure on her feet again. The University Hospital Zurich Schwindelbus, or “Vertigo Bus,” visited her at her nursing home. Using a mobile rotating chair, the team led by neurologist Dominik Straumann was able to diagnose Elsa Kaiser’s benign postural vertigo and treat it right away. After twenty minutes, she was liberated from many years of suffering.

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The premiere took place at the Magnolia nursing home in Zollikerberg when the team led by Professor Dominik Straumann from the Vertigo Center at University Hospital Zurich (USZ) visited with its new “Vertigo Bus”. This venue was no accident, as older people are particularly likely to suffer from vertigo. These are usually cases of benign postural vertigo, which occur when crystals dislodge in the inner ear and float around.

The diagnosis and treatment is actually simple. Performing certain movements of the head – known as Eply maneuvers – sends the crystals back in their original positions. “The Eply maneuvers are some of the most successful therapeutic methods in medicine. In 80 to 90 percent of cases, the person is vertigo-free afterwards,” says Dominik Straumann.

The diagnosis is often missed in older people, however, or the maneuvers may not be possible due to restricted mobility. The Vertigo Bus offers the solution: the vertigo can be diagnosed and treated in its mobile rotating chair, allowing patients like Elsa Kaiser to stay in a seated position.

Over the course of the one-year pilot project, Dominik Straumann’s team will visit ten additional old people’s facilities and nursing homes in their bus. The treatment can be offered free of charge thanks to a donation from entrepreneur Hans-Peter Wild to the USZ Foundation. If the Vertigo Bus proves to be a success, it will become one of the standard offerings at USZ.

*anonymized

100% financed

Dr. Hans-Peter Wild