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One small previous study (Acta Otolaryngol 1999; 119:895) showed a high recurrence rate of vestibular neuritis (VN): 17%. In this study, researchers used a questionnaire to follow up 103 patients with VN to determine the rates of recurrent VN, Bell palsy, sudden deafness, and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). Duration of follow-up time assessed by the questionnaire ranged from 5.7 to 20.5 years (mean, 9.8 years).
Only two patients (2%) had recurrent VN, both in the ear contralateral to the initial occurrence. None developed Bell palsy; 8% had sudden unilateral hearing loss (without concurrent vertigo); and 14% developed BPPV. The authors propose that VN is caused by activation of latent herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in the v…