The following studies are currently seeking participants. Please read the study details to see if you meet the criteria for taking part.
Public and Patient Opinion into a Major Research Programme Looking at the Mechanisms of Imbalance and Dizziness in Traumatic Brain Injury
Patient and public involvement and engagement session on Thursday 14 August 2025 at 13:00. This session will be held online via Zoom.
About the session:
We need your feedback about a planned programme of research into imbalance and dizziness – i.e. vestibular dysfunction - following traumatic brain injury (TBI). The research involves five UK major trauma centres serving a population of over 15 million people, with three in London (St Mary’s, St George’s and King’s) as well as Birmingham (Queen Elizabeth) and Cambridge (Addenbrookes). It will be the largest and most detailed programme of research looking specifically at balance problems in TBI ever conducted. We plan to recruit 600 hospitalised patients with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury and follow each patient over one year to track their recov ery. The programme will reveal the mechanisms of vestibular recovery (inner ear and brain) and provide new avenues for developing treatment for patients with TBI.
In this session we will pose a number of questions including:
- If you think this is an important area to study deserving funding?
- If you think this problem is well served by the NHS currently?
- Whether you can suggest ways to improve our ability to recruit patients
- We will also ask for your thoughts on our PPIE action plan that involves:
- professional polling agency (e.g YouGov) surveying the public’s and healthcare professionals’ understanding of the vestibular issues affecting TBI survivors
- a collaboration with the Royal Ballet to co-create a performance with patients
- a session with members of Parliament to communicate the results of our polling and the outcome of the co-created performance and hence to influence legislation to improve patient care
We very much look forward to your input, whether you are a patient, family or friend of a patient, or a member of the public who does not have any vestibular problems.
To register for this session and receive the Zoom link, please email info@menieres.org.uk with your name and email address, confirming you wish to attend this meeting.
Do You Have a Diagnosed Balance Disorder or Experience Balance Problems?
We're running a clinical trial at the University of Birmingham aimed at improving how balance disorders—like Ménière’s Disease—are assessed and diagnosed. If you’ve been living with the challenges of Ménière’s, your involvement could directly contribute to developing a faster, more reliable test for Ménière’s disease. Current balance tests cannot diagnose Ménière’s Disease. Doctors use a combination of symptoms, signs and hearing tests together to diagnose this condition. Not all patients present in the same way making this condition difficult to diagnose.
Previous research has shown that this test may help to diagnose Meniere’s disease which may be useful when it’s unclear from the clinical presentation. The new test assesses balance function using weak, non-invasive electrical currents and measuring the eyes response. We hope to create a test that is both fast and accurate, helping clinicians better understand and manage this complex condition.
What’s involved:
• You'll undergo a full range of balance tests currently used in the NHS
• You’ll also try out our new, non-invasive balance test
• All sessions are supervised by a vestibular research specialist and an ear, nose and throat (ENT) clinical registrar
Location & Perks:
- Just a 5-minute walk from University Railway Station, Birmingham
- Free parking available
- We cover travel costs from across the whole of the UK
- Lunch is on us!
- Interested or want more info?
Please read our Participant Information Sheet
Contact: Email: balancestudy@contacts.bham.ac.uk or WhatsApp, text or call: 07568061036
Study into the Effects of Chronic Dizziness
Are you:
- Over 18
- Living in the UK
- Affected by dizziness for 6+ months
What it involves:
- Complete an anonymous online questionnaire (up to 20 minutes)
Read the participant information sheet here. Please contact: katherine.hargreaves-2@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk for more information and to take part.
Does Your Loved One have Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD)?
Why are we doing this study?
We know that as a partner, family member, close friend or other close relationship to someone living with PPPD, you play a vital role in their health and wellbeing. However, very little is known about the impact of PPPD on you and your daily life as a significant other. This University of Manchester Masters dissertation research project aims to explore this, so we can understand where support is needed and how we should best include you in your loved one’s PPPD healthcare journey.
What is Involved?
A short, 1:1 semi-structured interview held via Microsoft Teams to talk about your lived experience as the significant other of someone who has PPPD.
You are eligible to take part if you are:
- Over the age of 18
- A significant other of someone who has been diagnosed with PPPD. A significant other is someone who is a key figure in the person with PPPD’s life (e.g. partner, close friend, parent or child) and has daily or near daily contact with them.
- Living in the UK
- Have access to a computer, tablet or mobile phone with video and a stable internet connection (for the Microsoft Teams conversation)
If you are interested, for more information please contact: Madeleine Begg - Email: SOLE.study@manchester.ac.uk
Watch this video for more information (opens an external link on YouTube).
SOLE Study (Significant Others’ Lived Experiences)
This study has been granted ethical approval by the University of Manchester Division of Psychology, Communication and Human Neuroscience. This project is GDPR compliant so you can be sure your data will be handled securely and confidentially, and you will not be personally-identifiable in the final manuscript or any presentations of the findings.
Help Research About Dizziness
The Cardiff University Dizzy Lab are developing a new questionnaire to help clinicians and researchers better understand different triggers and environments that evoke dizziness (and the feelings of anxiety that sometimes accompany them).
The aim is to improve research, the consistency of diagnosis and the assessment of rehabilitation approaches.
Anyone who is experiencing dizziness of any kind can take part because we want to ensure our questionnaire can tell the difference between different conditions (e.g. PPPD, vestibular migraine, Meniere's Disease, BPPV, vestibular neuritis, etc). You need to be over 18 to take part.
The study has two stages: Stage 1 is a 15-minute survey and Stage 2 is an optional 5-minute follow-up two weeks later.
You can take the survey using this link, on computer, tablet or phone (the layout is better on bigger screens, but it should work fine on phones).
Please visit this link to find out more and take the survey: https://cardiffunipsych.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bODOmZmlVJcuj4y
Thank you very much for participating.
Do You Have Persistent Postural Perceptual Disorder (3PD/PPPD)?
PARTICIPANTS REQUIRED: Volunteers required aged 18+ with a 3PD diagnosis and no cardiac, neurological, ophthalmological or psychiatric conditions
STARDUST is a UK-wide study to investigate the causes of 3PD symptoms, so that we can ultimately design new therapies
Participants will visit our Manchester laboratories to take part in simple experiments (some in VR) assessing their perception of movement. You will also need to undergo a screening interview and complete some baseline tests (IQ, visual acuity) and questionnaires to characterise symptoms.
Participants will be compensated for their time & reasonable travel expenses
If you are interested please contact: Dr. Joshua Haynes joshua.haynes@manchester.ac.uk to find out more.
Visit this link for more information.
Additionally, family and friends may wish to take part too as Control Participants are also needed for this study to help understand some of the causes of chronic dizziness.
CONTROL PARTICIPANTS REQUIRED: Healthy volunteers required aged 18+ with normal or corrected to normal eyesight.
STARDUST is a UK-wide study to investigate the causes of chronic dizziness symptoms, so we can design new therapies.
Participants will visit our Manchester laboratories to take part in simple experiments (some in VR) assessing their perception of movement. You will also need to complete some baseline tests (IQ, visual acuity) and questionnaires.
Participants will be compensated for their time & reasonable travel expenses.
If you are interested please contact Dr. Joshua Haynes: joshua.haynes@manchester.ac.uk to find out more and visit this link for more information.
TELEREHAB - DSS Clinical Validation Study
- Are you aged between 40 and 80 years old?
- Had a fall or are concerned about falling?
OR
- Experienced dizziness or imbalance?
AND
You've received ONE of these diagnoses:
- Stroke
- Mild cognitive impairment
- Vestibular dysfunction
- Long Covid-19
Your participation in our study “TELEREHAB – DSS Clinical Validation Study” can help us determine the effectiveness of a remote home-based augmented reality programme for balance rehabilitation compared with standard balance training. We thank you for considering participating in the study.
If you would like to receive more information, please contact the study coordinator: Brooke Nairn, email: b.nairn@ucl.ac.uk
Centre for Vestibular and Behavioural Neurosciences, University College London 33 Queen Square London WC1N 3BG. This study is funded by UK Research and Innovation UKRI, Reference Number 10062111 (under the European Union HORIZON 2021 scheme).
Additional information about the Ménière's Society Research Programme
I would like to find out out more about the Ménière's Society Research Programme
I would like to donate to the Research Fund
I would like to become a Research Supporter to support more vital vestibular research.
Help support research
The Meniere's Society relies on donations to enable us to fund essential research into vestibular disorders. Here's how you can help…