By Marcello Cherchi, MD PhD
The half-somersault maneuver was devised by Dr. Carol Foster (Foster et al. 2012).
The Figures below shows the left-sided Foster maneuver for treating left-sided posterior canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.
The following text, adapted from foster and colleagues (Foster et al. 2012), describes the half-somersault maneuver for treating left-sided posterior canal BPPV as follows:
- The patient kneels on all fours, then tilts the head upward and backward.
- The somersault position is assumed (with the torso tilted forward, and the head/neck inclined toward the knees), with the chin tucked as far as possible toward the knees.
- The head is turned about 45 degrees toward the affected (left) side, facing that side’s elbow.
- While maintaining the head 45 degrees rotated toward the affected (left) side (relative to the torso), the head is raised to the level of the shoulders.
- The head is raised to a fully upright position.
Another illustration of this is shown in the Figure below, from Savas and colleagues (Savaş et al. 2024).
Another illustration of this is shown in the Figure below.
Foster maneuver, left posterior canal, videos
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V9N0IxBk_Y (BoysTownHospital)
The Foster maneuver has been studied in multiple prospective randomized trials:
- Against the Epley maneuver (Foster et al. 2012; Khaftari et al. 2021).
- Against the Brandt-Daroff maneuver (Jaffar et al. 2023).
References
Foster CA, Ponnapan A, Zaccaro K, Strong D (2012) A Comparison of Two Home Exercises for Benign Positional Vertigo: Half Somersault versus Epley Maneuver. Audiology and Neurotology Extra 2: 16-23. doi: 10.1159/000337947
Jaffar M, Ghous M, Ayaz M, Khan AA, Akbar A, Haleem F (2023) Effects of Half-Somersault and Brandt-Daroff exercise on dizziness, fear of fall and quality of life in patients with posterior canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo: A randomised control trial. J Pak Med Assoc 73: 139-142. doi: 10.47391/JPMA.3333
Khaftari MD, Ahadi M, Maarefvand M, Jalaei B (2021) The Efficacy of the Half Somersault Maneuver in Comparison to the Epley Maneuver in Patients with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo. J Int Adv Otol 17: 417-421. doi: 10.5152/iao.2021.9072
Savaş Ö, Cüreoğlu S, Güneri EA (2024) Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo. In: Kalcioglu MT, Bayar Muluk N, Jenkins HA (eds) Neurotology Updates. Springer Nature Switzerland, Cham, pp 91-136
