Applying knowledge--challenges in bringing scientific advances to dizzy patients.

Simple diagnostic or therapeutic procedures can produce tremendous benefits for dizzy patients. To see how new ideas in the laboratory evolve into benefits for patients, an attempt to analyze how the corresponding information is distributed was made. To quantify that flow of information, a number of new scientific publications, citation numbers, and a number of new books on relevant subjects were looked at. For vertigo, this approach was facilitated by the fact that the diagnostic procedures for benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo (BPPV) and for canal paresis can be traced back to seminal publications. Results indicate that the current way of disseminating new information used here is working well, and that new ideas on diagnosis and treatment are readily available to practitioners. However, the application of new methods is limited by the availability of the required technology. It is conjectured that the technological requirements have become more complex over time, leading to a slower uptake of new technology.