Both over-the-counter OTC and prescription options are available. Two main physical therapy maneuvers are used to treat symptoms of vertigo. Your doctor will work with you to learn the proper technique so you can perform them correctly. These maneuvers include:. Waiting out the symptoms of vertigo may be the best option for some people. After all, vertigo can ease in a matter of hours, minutes, or even seconds. If you experience episodes of vertigo, make an appointment to see your doctor.
Your doctor will perform a physical exam. They may also conduct several tests to check your eyes, hearing, and balance.
An MRI can give your doctor a detailed image of your brain. They can work with you to understand the underlying cause and find treatments that can both prevent vertigo attacks and ease them if and when they occur. They can be treated easily, which will eliminate vertigo episodes. Learn about home remedies for vertigo that may help treat your symptoms. If you experience dizziness from vertigo, balance therapy like Cawthorne-Cooksey head exercises can help you restore your sense of balance.
Learn more…. Dizziness and vertigo are two similar feelings. Constant or long-lasting dizziness is often a sign of a more serious ear disorder or undiagnosed migraines.
Not only could it be a sign that something else is going on, but it also puts you in danger of injuring yourself. Vertigo can actually be a sign of a stroke, the CDC says. If you feel a spinning dizzy sensation that hits suddenly and also experience any other symptoms of stroke at the same time for instance, weakness, especially on one side of the body; sudden severe headache; or trouble speaking, seeing, or walking , you should see a doctor to rule it out.
Cho urges a visit to the emergency room where doctors can do a quick check to make sure. Your doctor might also refer you for further testing to check things like your balance and eye movements, the Mayo Clinic says. You may even be given blood tests to look for an infection. The good news: Dizzy spells usually get better in a few weeks without treatment. But there are some medications and other treatment strategies that may help.
Medications that target dizziness and nausea. There are some drugs that can provide immediate relief from dizziness and nausea, including prescription antihistamines and anticholinergic. Canalith repositioning.
This involves maneuvering the position of your head, the Mayo Clinic says. Vestibular rehabilitation. This form of physical therapy, which makes your balance system less sensitive to motion, may help too.
Water pills. Migraine medicine. This may be helpful if your doctor suspects migraines are behind your dizziness. You may also experience your eyes briefly moving uncontrollably nystagmus. BPPV is thought to be caused by small fragments of debris calcium carbonate crystals , which break off from the lining of the channels in your inner ear.
The fragments don't usually cause a problem, unless they get into one of the ear's fluid-filled canals. When your head is still, the fragments sit at the bottom of the canal.
However, certain head movements cause them to be swept along the fluid-filled canal, which sends confusing messages to your brain, causing vertigo. BPPV usually affects older people, with most cases occurring in people older than 50 years of age. Vertigo can sometimes develop after a head injury. If you have symptoms of dizziness or vertigo following a head injury, seek medical attention. Read more about severe head injuries and minor head injuries. Labyrinthitis is an inner ear infection that causes a structure deep inside your ear the labyrinth to become inflamed.
The labyrinth is a maze of fluid-filled channels that control hearing and balance. When the labyrinth becomes inflamed, the information it sends to your brain is different from the information sent from your unaffected ear and your eyes. These conflicting signals cause vertigo and dizziness. Labyrinthitis is usually caused by a viral infection, such as the common cold or flu , which spreads to the labyrinth.
Less commonly, it's caused by a bacterial infection. Vertigo caused by labyrinthitis may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, hearing loss , tinnitus and sometimes a high temperature and ear pain. Vestibular neuronitis, also known as vestibular neuritis, is an inner ear condition that causes inflammation of the nerve connecting the labyrinth to the brain.
In some cases, the labyrinth itself can also be inflamed. The condition is usually caused by a viral infection. It usually comes on suddenly and can cause other symptoms, such as unsteadiness, nausea feeling sick and vomiting being sick. You won't normally have any hearing problems. This can cause vertigo, as well as hearing loss, tinnitus and aural fullness a feeling of pressure in your ear. The attacks often cause nausea and vomiting.
The cause is unknown, but symptoms can be controlled by diet and medication. Rarely, you may need further treatment in the form of surgery. Vertigo may occur as a side effect of some types of medication. Check the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine to see if vertigo is listed as a possible side effect.
Don't stop taking prescribed medication without your doctor's advice, but speak to your GP if you're worried about the side effects. They may be able to prescribe an alternative medication. Central vertigo is caused by problems in part of your brain, such as the cerebellum located at the bottom of the brain or the brainstem the lower part of the brain that's connected to the spinal cord.
Causes of central vertigo include:. Your GP will ask about your symptoms and carry out some simple tests to help them make an accurate diagnosis. Your GP may also carry out a physical examination to check for signs of conditions that may be causing your vertigo. This could include looking inside your ears and checking your eyes for signs of uncontrollable movement nystagmus.
Your GP may check your balance or try to recreate your symptoms by asking you to move quickly from a sitting to a lying position. If you have tinnitus ringing in your ears or hearing loss, your GP may refer you to an ear, nose and throat ENT specialist, who can carry out some hearing tests.
Videonystagmography VNG is sometimes used to check for signs of nystagmus in more detail. Nystagmus can indicate a problem with the organs that help you to balance. During this test, special goggles are placed over your eyes and you'll be asked to look at various still and moving targets.
The goggles are fitted with a video camera to record the movements of your eyes. Electronystagmography may also be used, where electrodes are placed around the eye instead of goggles.
A caloric test involves running warm or cool water or air into your ear for about 30 seconds. The change in temperature stimulates the balance organ in the ear, allowing the specialist to check how well it's working.
This test isn't painful, although it's normal to feel dizzy during the test. This can sometimes continue for a few minutes afterwards. A machine to test your balance may be used to give valuable information about how you are using your vision, proprioception sensations from your feet and joints and the input from your ear to maintain balance.
This may help to plan your rehabilitation and monitor your treatment. In some cases, a scan of your head may be used to look for the cause of your vertigo, such as an acoustic neuroma a non-cancerous brain tumour. An MRI scan uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to produce a detailed image of the inside of your head, whereas a CT scan uses a series of detailed X-rays to create an image.
During a vertigo attack, lying still in a quiet, darkened room may help to ease any symptoms of nausea and reduce the sensation of spinning. You may be advised to take medication.
You should also try to avoid stressful situations, as anxiety can make the symptoms of vertigo worse. Branch WT, et al. Approach to the patient with dizziness. Heat injury and heat exhaustion. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Muncie HL, et al. Dizziness: Approach to evaluation and management. American Family Physician. Moskowitz HS, et al. Meniere disease. Migraine information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Shepard NT expert opinion.
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 4, Rohren CH expert opinion. July 4, Important facts about falls.
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