Acute Unilateral Peripheral Vestibulopathy After COVID-19 Vaccination: Initial Experience in a Tertiary Neurotology Center.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to identify patients who developed acute unilateral peripheral vestibulopathy (AUPVP) after COVID-19 vaccination. Methods: For this single-center, retrospective study, we screened the medical records of our tertiary interdisciplinary neurotology center for patients who had presented with AUPVP within 30 days after COVID-19 vaccination (study period: 1 June-31 December 2021). The initial diagnosis of AUPVP was based on a comprehensive bedside neurotological examination. Laboratory vestibular testing (video head impulse test, cervical and ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials, dynamic visual acuity, subjective visual vertical, video-oculography, caloric testing) was performed 1-5 months later. Results: Twenty-six patients were diagnosed with AUPVP within the study period. Of those, Discussion and Conclusions: The present study should raise clinicians' awareness for AUPVP after COVID-19 vaccination. The relatively high fraction of such cases among our AUPVP patients may be due to a certain selection bias at a tertiary neurotology center. Patients presenting with acute vestibular symptoms should be questioned about their vaccination status and the date of the last vaccination dose. Furthermore, cases of AUPVP occurring shortly after a COVID-19 vaccination should be reported to the health authorities to help determining a possible causal relationship.