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CC BY 4.0 · Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2025; 29(04): s00451810116
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1810116
Original Research

Telerehabilitation and Physical Therapy: Proposal for a Therapeutic Assessment Applied to Vestibular Dysfunctions

Authors

  • Lucas Barbosa de Araújo

    1   Department of Physical Therapy, Post-Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil

  • Karla Vanessa Rodrigues Soares Menezes

    2   School of Rehabilitation, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada

  • Jully Israely de Azevedo Rodolfo

    3   Department of Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil

  • Maria das Graças de Araújo Lira

    1   Department of Physical Therapy, Post-Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil

  • Karyna Myrelly Oliveira Bezerra de Figueiredo Ribeiro 

    1   Department of Physical Therapy, Post-Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil

Funding The authors declare that the present work was supported by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), Brazil, under finance code 001.
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Abstract

Introduction

Telerehabilitation has been used in several areas of physical therapy, including for respiratory, neurological, and musculoskeletal functions of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), after stroke, and after hospital discharge (respectively). However, a few studies investigated protocols for assessing vestibular dysfunctions using teleconsultation.

Objective

To propose a protocol for remote physical therapy assessment of vestibular dysfunctions.

Methods

A literature review on telerehabilitation in physical therapy was conducted in the PubMed and SciELO databases using the search terms telehealth, telerehabilitation, vestibular disease, dizziness, vertigo, and postural balance. Four physical therapists with experience in the vestibular rehabilitation field discussed the collected data and suggested adaptations for remote clinical and functional tests to assess patients with vestibular dysfunctions.

Results

The proposed protocol for remote assessment of vestibular dysfunctions comprised anamnesis, adaptations of nine oculomotors, two static balance, and one dynamic gait balance tests, a questionnaire assessing the impact of dizziness on quality of life, and observation of cervical mobility.

Conclusion

The protocol may be a valuable tool to assess and monitor the care of patients with vestibular dysfunction, reducing healthcare costs for the therapist and patient and enabling the attendance of those with difficulties in traveling to the rehabilitation center or needing isolation.

Keywords

dizziness - health evaluation - telehealth - vertigo - vestibular diseases

Authors' Contribution

Conceptualization: K.M.O.B.F.R.; Methodology: K.M.O.B.F.R., L.B.A., K.V.R.S.M.; Project administration: K.M.O.B.F.R.; Writing – original draft: L.B.A., K.V.R.S.M., J.I.A.R.; Writing – review & editing: K.M.O.B.F.R., M.G.A.L.; Supervision: K.M.O.B.F.R.; Funding acquisition: K.M.O.B.F.R. All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.


Data Availability Statement

Data supporting the results of this study are available upon a reasonable request from the corresponding author.


Supplementary Material



Publication History

Received: 31 October 2024

Accepted: 24 May 2025

Article published online:
16 October 2025

© 2025. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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Bibliographical Record
Lucas Barbosa de Araújo, Karla Vanessa Rodrigues Soares Menezes, Jully Israely de Azevedo Rodolfo, Maria das Graças de Araújo Lira, Karyna Myrelly Oliveira Bezerra de Figueiredo Ribeiro. Telerehabilitation and Physical Therapy: Proposal for a Therapeutic Assessment Applied to Vestibular Dysfunctions. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2025; 29: s00451810116.
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1810116
 

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