Objective Vestibular disease and dizziness are important causes of morbidity. The purpose of this study is to assess the regional prevalence of these diagnoses. Methods This is a cross-sectional, population-based study of all patients in the region of interest diagnosed with dizziness or vestibular disease between 2010 and 2020. Results During the study period, 31,670 patients were diagnosed with dizziness. The mean age was 62 years (SD = 17). There were 20,269 females and 11,401 males; 64% (OR 1.34, p < .0001) of patients were white and 92% (OR 5.16, p < .0001) of patients were non-Hispanic. The prevalence of dizziness was 2.91%. A total of 8480 patients were diagnosed with vestibular disease. The mean age was 62 years (SD = 16). There were 5766 females and 2714 males; 60% (OR 1.13 p < .0001) of patients were white and 88% (OR 3.29, p < .0001) of patients were non-Hispanic. The prevalence of vestibular disease was 0.78%. The most common causes of vestibular disease were benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (n = 7040, 83%), vestibular schwannoma (n = 580, 7%), and Meniere’s disease (n = 360, 4%). Conclusions Dizziness and vestibular disease are disproportionately diagnosed in non-Hispanic white women. The regional prevalence of dizziness and vestibular disease was lower than other published values.

Background Abdominal access during ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt insertion has historically been obtained by neurosurgeons via an open abdominal approach. With recent advances in laparoscopy, neurosurgeons frequently consult general surgery for aid during the procedure. The goal of this study is to identify if laparoscopic assistance improves the overall outcomes of the procedure. Methods This retrospective study included all patients who underwent open or laparoscopic VP shunt placement between September 2012 and August 2020 at our tertiary referral hospital. Patient demographics, comorbidities, prior history of abdominal surgery, open vs. laparoscopic insertion, operation time, and complications within 30 days were obtained. Results Neurosurgery placed 107 shunts using an open abdominal technique and general surgery placed 78 using laparoscopy. The average OR time in minutes was 75.5 minutes for the open cohort and 61.8 for the laparoscopic cohort ( p = 0.006). In patients without a history of abdominal surgery, the average OR time in minutes was 79.4 in the open cohort and 57.1 in the laparoscopic cohort ( p = 0.015). The postoperative shunt infection rate was 10.2% in the open group and 3.8% in the laparoscopic group ( p = 0.077). Discussion Laparoscopic placement of VP shunts is a reasonable alternative to open placement and results in shorter OR times. There is also a trend toward few infections in the laparoscopic placement. There appears to be an advantage with a team approach and laparoscopic placement of the peritoneal portion of the shunt.

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