If it seems like the world is spinning and you aren?t on a merry-go-round, you might have vertigo. This unnerving condition usually stems from a problem in the inner ear?particularly in the vestibular system, which controls balance. Vertigo can also be triggered by a head or neck injury, stroke, or the use of certain medications.
Vertigo produces symptoms like spinning, swaying, loss of balance, dizziness, lightheadedness, nausea, headache, and abnormal eye movements. After an exam and tests of your balance, your doctor can rule out other conditions that cause dizziness and confirm whether you have vertigo.
Sometimes, vertigo disappears on its own within a few weeks or months. To relieve symptoms sooner, several types of therapies are available. One common vertigo treatment is called canalith repositioning, or the Epley maneuver. Normally, small calcium carbonate crystals, called canaliths, are attached to a membrane in the inner ear. Aging, injury, or infection can detach these crystals and cause them to enter the fluid-filled canals in your inner ear. There, they stimulate hair cells, which produces a false sensation of movement. The doctor will move your head into certain angled positions and hold it there for several seconds to shift the canaliths back into the inner ear where they belong.
Vestibular rehabilitation is another vertigo treatment that corrects any problems in your vestibular system. This program can involve balance retraining, neck motion exercises, and vision stability training.
Diet changes may help with vertigo treatment. Avoiding foods high in sugar or salt, limiting alcohol and caffeine, and drinking enough fluid throughout the day can help regulate fluid imbalances that contribute to certain types of vertigo. Some people find that talking to a counselor helps them deal with the emotional impacts of the disease. If standard vertigo treatment doesn?t work, surgery can be done to correct inner ear function.
What is vertigo? It’s caused by vestibular (balance) system disorders that originate in the inner ear, where balance is regulated. Vertigo symptoms can lead you to three types of the condition: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV): This occurs when tiny calcium crystals in the utricle (one of the structures of … Read More
