Benign recurrent vertigo in Japanese.

Twenty-one cases of Japanese patients exhibiting recurrent attacks of vertigo are reported. Fifteen of the cases are females. The mean age of onset of the vertigo is 30.8 years. In 11 patients, the duration of attacks is less than 10 min. Caloric responses are normal in all patients. Although two patients demonstrate hearing loss, the rest of the patients exhibit no hearing loss. Headaches have been reported in all patients. Eighteen of the patients experience headaches associated with the vertiginous attacks. The clinical features observed in our cases are consistent with a diagnosis of benign recurrent vertigo. Four patients exhibit cranial nerve symptoms which are features of basilar artery migraine. Basilar artery migraine is attributed to a migrainous disturbance of the basilar artery. Benign recurrent vertigo is also ascribed to a migrainous disorder affecting the vestibular system, thus it is a localized clinical manifestation of basilar artery migraine.