Sudbury Vertigo Risk Score

The Sudbury Vertigo Risk Score is a clinical prediction tool designed to estimate the risk of a serious underlying cause of vertigo in patients presenting to the emergency department. The score incorporates 7 clinical variables: male sex, age >65 years, history of hypertension, diabetes, presence of motor or sensory deficits, cerebellar signs or symptoms, and diagnosis of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. Scores < 5 indicate a very low risk (0%) of a serious diagnosis (e.g., stroke, TIA, vertebral artery dissection, brain tumor), while scores > 8 confer a high risk (41%). The tool demonstrated excellent discriminatory performance (C-statistic 0.96) and may aid in guiding further diagnostic evaluation and disposition decisions in the ED setting.

Reference

Robert Ohle, David W Savage, Danielle Roy et al. Development of a Clinical Risk Score to Risk Stratify for a Serious Cause of Vertigo in Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department. Ann Emerg Med. 2025 Feb;85(2):122-131.