France Leads International BAW Efforts
Dr. Christian Chabbert with GDR Vertige in France has used his network of professional connections across Europe to build an international coalition of vestibular clinicians to raise awareness about these invisible conditions by participating in VeDA’s Balance Awareness Week (BAW). Why? In his words:
Every year, 1 million people in France seek treatment for balance disorders and vertigo. The lack of targeted treatment for these patients, together with the high societal cost of treating these pathologies, requires rapid corrective actions to meet the strong medical need for better management of these conditions. BAW is a good opportunity to communicate widely about these diseases and the means of treating them. In 2022 BAW started in France as a follow up of the VeDA initiative. Our main targets are of three kinds.
First, the patients with these diseases, but also their family and professional contacts. Many people affected by balance disorders and vertigo are often unaware that it is a well-defined pathology that affects a large number of people, and that there are therapeutic solutions and a whole network of care to manage them. In addition to the symptoms associated with their condition, many patients complain of a lack of knowledge about vestibular pathology in their family and the medical professionals who care for them. They are often blamed of catastrophism, of exaggerating their condition. This lack of consideration adds to their daily burden. BAW is an opportunity to reach out to the patient’s environment, so that their condition is better understood and integrated by those around them.
The second target group for BAW is front-line practitioners. It is important to raise awareness among family and emergency physicians of the high prevalence of these diseases and the need for better referral to specialists in the field.
The third target is decision-makers and funders of public research. It is essential to raise awareness of the importance of providing financial support, as well as researchers and clinician positions, for improving the understanding and treatment of vertigo and balance disorders. The project to set up a research institute in France dedicated to research on vertigo and balance disorders must be supported by the research authorities.
BAW brings together all the professional and patient associations in France to support this important initiative.
Author: Christian Chabbert, PhD, HDR – GDR Vertige
International Partners celebrating Balance Awareness Week:
- Association des Désordres Vestibulaires
- Asociacion Sindrome de Meniere Espana
- Tunisian Vertigo Medical Society
- Hodepine Norge Vestibulær Migrene
- University Hospital Motol
- Bern University Hospital
- LMU Kinikum
- Maastricht University
- University of Antwerp
- Vertigo, Tinnitus, and Hypoacusis Association/Clinica Nova