Vertigo and Dizziness
Vertigo and dizziness have many different causes and most can be successfully treated with vestibular rehabilitation
What is the Vestibular System?
The vestibular system lies within your inner ear and is comprised of five sense organs which provides information to your brain about your heads’ rotational movements, linear movements and static head positions relative to gravity.
The five organs include three semicircular canals and two otoliths (the saccule and utricle).
What are the causes of Dizziness and Vertigo?
Causes of dizziness and vertigo are multifactorial and may include:
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)
Inner ear virus ( called neuritis or labyrinthitis)
Decline in the vestibular system due to aging
Migraine headaches
Side effects from medications
What is Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)?
BPPV is the most common form of positional vertigo and is responsible for nearly 50% of peripheral vestibular dysfunction. Occasionally BPPV occurs after some type of head trauma (car accident, blow to the head) but most commonly it begins “out of the blue” with no precipitating incident.
In the otoliths are calcium carbonate crystals called otoconia that are fixed to a membrane within the saccule and utricle. If they dislodge from the membrane they can move into the semicircular canals causing the vestibular system to send conflicting information to the brain which results in vertigo and nausea.
BPPV can be treated successfully by head positioning maneuvers which move the otoconia around the semicircular canals and back into the otoliths restoring correct inputs to the brain. This type of treatment when performed by a professional trained in vestibular rehabilitation is 98% successful after three sessions and may only require one treatment.