Tired of having crystal disease? Do not despair - with the help of a knowledgeable therapist, this maneuver, home exercises and these tips can make you get rid of the crystal disease in record time. Feel free to share this article on crystal disease with someone who is suffering from dizziness - maybe this is the diagnosis they have?

In this article, we will go through several relevant home exercises and treatment modalities, including:

How to diagnose crystal disease
- Test Dix Hallpike
Common symptoms
Apple's maneuver
Semont maneuvering
Alternative treatment

Crystal sickness is a relatively common nuisance. In fact, as many as 1 in 100 will be affected in one year. Fortunately, the condition is fairly easy to treat for knowledgeable therapists - such as ENT doctors, chiropractors, physiotherapists and manual therapists. Unfortunately, it is not common knowledge that this is a diagnosis that responds very well to specific treatment measures (such as Epley's maneuver which often cures the condition in 1-2 treatments), so many stay for several months with the condition. Do you have input? Use the comment field below or ours Facebook Page.

Affected? Join the Facebook group «Krystallsyken - Norway: Research and news»For the latest updates on research and media writing about this disorder. Here, members can also get help and support - at all times of the day - through the exchange of their own experiences and advice.

What Are Common Symptoms Of Crystal Sickness?

The most common symptoms of crystalline or benign postural dizziness are vertigo, dizziness caused by special movements (eg lying on one side of the bed), a feeling of being 'light headed' and nauseous. The symptoms may vary from person to person - but the characteristic symptom is that it is always produced through the same movement, often a twist to one side. Thus, it is common for people affected by crystal sickness to describe the condition as they turn in bed to a side or roll over to the right or left.

Symptoms can also occur when the person tiltes their head back, such as at the hairdresser or at certain yoga positions. A dizziness caused by crystal sickness can also produce nystagmus (the eyes move back and forth, uncontrolled) in the eyes and always last less than one minute.

How to diagnose crystal disease - and how to diagnose position-related dizziness?

A clinician will make the diagnosis based on history taking and clinical examination. The symptoms of crystal disease are often so characteristic that a clinician will be able to estimate the diagnosis based on the history alone. To make the diagnosis, clinicians use a special test called "Dix-Hallpike" - this is often very specific and has been specifically developed to diagnose crystal sickness / postural dizziness.

Dix-Hallpike test for crystal sick

In this test, the clinician quickly brings the patient from sitting to supine position with his head twisted 45 degrees to one side and 20 degrees backwards (extension). A positive Dix-Hallpike will reproduce the patient's dizziness attack along with characteristic nystagmus (rapid flick of the eyes back and forth). This symptom is often very easy to see, but can also be less obvious - it may be helpful for the clinician to equip the patient with so-called Frenzel glasses (a kind of video glasses that record the reaction).

What Is Common Treatment For Crystal Sickness?

Wait and see: Crystal disease is, as mentioned, a job-related dizziness that is considered "self-limiting" as it often lasts for 1-2 months before it disappears. However, those who seek help can receive significantly faster help, as often only one or two treatments are required to correct the diagnosis of a skilled therapist. Chiropractors, manual therapists and ENT doctors are all trained in this form of treatment. Crystal sickness can persist for much longer than 2 months, and considering how troublesome this diagnosis is, we recommend that you get treatment and get rid of the problem as soon as possible.

Apple's Maneuver or Semont Maneuver: Said therapists are well trained in this technique and studies have shown that as many as 80% are cured with this form of treatment. Research has shown that the two techniques are almost equally effective (Hilton et al).

Apple's maneuver in the treatment of crystal disease

This maneuver or treatment technique is also known as the crystal repositioning procedure and was, hence the name, developed by Dr. Epley. The maneuver is performed through four positions where the clinician holds the four positions for about 30 seconds at a time - the main purpose is to get the misplaced otoliths (ear stones) in place in the inner ear. The treatment is very effective and it is common with full recovery during 2 treatments.

Research: This is the most effective treatment

Research has shown that Apple's maneuver performed by a professional therapist - in combination with home exercises - is the most effective treatment for crystal melanoma (Helminski et al).

- ILLUSTRATION: EPLEYS MANUAL

Semont maneuvering

Often called the little brother of Apple's maneuver, as it is not as effective and requires 3-4 treatments for full recovery. Apple's maneuver is often preferred by the two.

What if the repositioning maneuvers don't work for me?

Apple's maneuver works in about 50-75% of treated cases already at the first consultation. This leaves 25-50% who do not experience complete improvement or any improvement at all after the first treatment - about 5% will also experience a worsening of the condition.

That is why it is said that up to 4 treatments with Epley's maneuver should be performed before giving up this form of treatment. It is most common that the posterior archway in the inner ear is affected, but sometimes there may be other arches - and then the maneuver should be modified accordingly.

Some clinics and facilities have so-called "vertigo chairs" that will make repositioning more effective, but this is often what we call "games for the gallery" and totally unnecessary, as a trained clinician will have good effect with the manual technique Epley's maneuver.

Also read: - 4 Home exercises against Crystal Disease

Crystal Disease and Relapse: Can You Get Relapse?

Unfortunately, yes, it is the case that those affected by crystal melanoma are often affected again. Research has shown that 33% will have a relapse within one year and that as many as 50% will have a relapse within five years. If crystal disease reappears, and you have had a good effect of Apple's maneuver before, you should see the same clinician for treatment again.

Feel free to share this article with colleagues, friends and acquaintances. If you want exercises or articles sent as a document with repetitions and the like, we ask you like and get in touch via get Facebook page here . If you have any questions, just give it a go Contact us - then we will answer you as best we can, completely free. Otherwise feel free to see ours YouTube channel for more tips and exercises.

CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE: - 8 Good Advice and Measures against Dizziness

ALSO READ: What You Should Know About Fibromyalgia

Sources and research

Hilton, MP; Pinder, DK (8 December 2014). «The Epley (canalith repositioning) maneuver for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo». The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 12: CD003162
Helminski, JO; Zee, DS; Janssen, I .; Hain, TC (2010). «Effectiveness of Particle Repositioning Maneuvers in the Treatment of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: A Systematic Review». Physical Therapy

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4 Home Exercises Against Crystal Disease (Benign Postural Dizziness)

12/07/2016/0 Comments/i Exercises and Exercise, Dizziness and Crystal Disease/av Pain clinics - Interdisciplinary Health

4 Home Exercises Against Crystal Sickness

Do you bother crystal sick and job-related dizziness? Here are 4 good home exercises for crystal sick that can give less dizziness and better function. You can read more about crystal sick here to gain a better understanding of the diagnosis.

- Professional treatment will always be recommended in combination with home exercises

Home exercises can be effective and not least free, but we still recommend that you visit a clinic if you experience symptoms that you think are crystal sick - without the right knowledge, you do not have the opportunity to weed out more serious diagnoses such as a brain tumor or cerebral haemorrhage. A therapist will be able to give you a diagnosis and tell you on which side (and in which channel) you have crystal disease.

A good therapist should also be able to treat the condition in about 2-4x treatments with Apple's maneuver - provided it is correctly diagnosed. It is also the case that due to the maneuver, it is relatively common to experience mild nausea after it has been performed - and then a clinician will be able to take care of you better than if you are at home. We of course point out that there are different archways that may be affected, and that some variations of crystal disease are more serious than others - and that this will then be reflected in the number of necessary treatments.

In this article, we have focused on exercises for crystal melanoma that aim to alleviate and cure the diagnosis. Again, if you are unsure of what you have then we encourage you to speak with your health care provider before attempting the exercises on your own:

1. The Brandt-Daroff exercise

Often one of the first home exercises to be given - but certainly not the most effective. In recent times, people have moved more and more away from this exercise, as it lacks effect, takes a long time and involves a risk of misplacing the crystals. The exercise was developed in 1980 by Brandt & Daroff, at a time when the entire mechanism behind crystal disease was not known. Research has shown that Epley's maneuver (preferably performed by a public health-authorized clinician such as a manual therapist or chiropractor) is a significantly more effective way to treat crystal melanoma. Only 25% get better after doing the Brandt-Daroff exercise for a week, but after two weeks you will have a significantly higher improvement percentage.

The exercises are performed three times a day for two weeks - a total of 42 rounds. In each set, perform the exercise as shown in the illustration five times (you repeat the exercise five times). In most people, they have experienced clear improvement after about 30 rounds or 10 days of exercise. There is a certain risk of moving parts of the crystals into other channels due to the fact that you do the exercise so many times.

Position 1: Start sitting, straight up and down.

Position 2: Lie down on the side as directed with your head twisted upwards about 40-45 degrees. Hold the position for 30 seconds.

Position 3: Sit back up. Wait 30 seconds.

Position 4: Repeat on the opposite side. Hold the position for 30 seconds.

- The exercise is repeated over 5 rounds

2. Home version of Apple's Maneuver

Apple's maneuver is the home exercise that has the best evidence and research in the back for proven effect. The best thing is, as mentioned, to get a clinical examination and treatment, but this home exercise can also work for you with a position-related crystal disease.

The exercise is performed by holding the two sitting positions for 1 minute and the lying positions for 30 seconds each.

Position 1: Sit upright. Hold the position for 30 seconds.

Position 2: Turn your head to the left. Hold the position for 30 seconds.

Position 3: Fold back relatively quickly with a pillow under your neck. Hold your head to the left for 30 seconds.

Position 4: Turn your head to the right and hold the position for 30 seconds.

Position 5: Turn the body over to the right and wait 30 seconds.

- Repeat over 3 rounds. Each round takes about 2 1/2 minutes. We encourage you to do the exercises in the evening just before going to bed - in this way you can go to bed if you get dizzy from doing the exercises. The illustration above is for left-sided crystal sickness.

Home version of Semont's Maneuver

A study conducted in 2004 (Radke et al) showed that the home exercise of Apple's maneuver was significantly more effective than Semont's maneuver. As much as a 95% improvement for Epleys against a 58% improvement with Semont's home practice. They concluded that this was due to the fact that the exercise was so difficult to learn - and we therefore choose to show it to you here, but strongly recommend that you let the maneuver be performed by a professional clinician.

4. Foster's maneuver

A home exercise developed by Dr. Carol Foster in 2012 for the most common form of crystal disease in the posterior arch. The exercise is in many ways like "diving a crow" halfway and is therefore also called "half somersault" in English.

The exercise, as described in Dr. Carol Foster's 2012 study. Hold each position for approximately 30 seconds. This illustration is for right-sided crystal disease - to treat the left side, just do the exercise on the opposite side.

Position A: Stand on all fours and bend your head backwards - so that you are looking upwards towards the ceiling.

Position B: Place your head as if you were going to dive crow ahead.

Position C: Turn your head towards the right elbow - 45 degrees.

Position D: Raise your head quickly to shoulder height. In the picture, it appears to be 90 degrees - but in Foster's study, it is clear that the head should be turned 45 degrees. This also makes considerably more sense in that it is a question of repositioning crystals.

Position E: Bend your head back to the starting position.

This is 4 home exercises and exercises against the crystal disease (also called BPV / BPPV or benign positional dizziness). Good home exercises and exercises against crystal disease that cure the problem in most cases. If you have experienced dizziness for a long time, we recommend that you go to an examination by a doctor, chiropractor or manual therapist to get a concrete diagnosis of the problem.

- After performing the exercise

After doing the exercises, you should rest for about 15 minutes. It is also often recommended to sleep with two pillows for 2-3 nights after such a maneuver, as well as try to sleep on the affected side. We must also remember that it is important to get the right diagnosis for optimal treatment - and also keep in mind that in several cases it can also be neck-related dizziness in the big picture.

Feel free to share this article with colleagues, friends and acquaintances. If you want articles, exercises or the like sent as a document with repetitions and the like, we ask you like and get in touch via get Facebook page here . If you have any questions, just comment directly in the article or to contact us (totally free) - we will do our best to help you.

Combination Dizziness: Neck + Crystals = True

Did you know that reduced function in the muscles and joints of the neck can contribute to your dizziness? This is called cervicogenic dizziness or neck dizziness. Those who have been affected by dizziness also know how uncomfortable this is, and that you are happy to tense up. In the video below, we show you some exercises that can help with neck pain. Of self-measures against tension between the shoulder blades and in the neck, we gladly recommend the use of trigger point balls against sore muscle points (see example here - the link opens in a new window).

VIDEO: 5 Clothes Exercises Against Stiff Neck

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NEXT PAGE: - This you should know about the crystal disease!

Also read: - Why am I dizzy?

Also read: - 8 good tips and measures against dizziness!

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Source: Foster CA, Ponnapan A, Zaccaro K, Strong D. A comparison of two home exercises for benign positional vertigo: Half somersault versus Epley Maneuver. Audiol Neurotol Extra 2012;2:16-23