|  | Conditions Treatments | Headaches

What Are the Causes of Headache & Vertigo?

Headaches can be caused by many external factors including tight muscles, stress and overexertion. More severe types of headaches called migraines can have other symptoms, including vertigo.

  1. What is Vertigo?

    • Vertigo is not a disease but a symptom of rapid movement or other internal factors that alter the body's equilibrium. Vertigo can cause an uncomfortable tipping sensation, which may be so disorienting that it leads to faintness, nausea or vomiting.

    Headaches and Vertigo

    • Severe headaches called migraines are sometimes combined with vertigo. This symptom is caused by the dilation and constriction of intracranial blood vessels. It is said that the ion channels in the brain stem experience some sort of dysfunction, leading to the feelings of dizziness.

    Other Causes of Vertigo

    • Vertigo can be caused by a number of different factors and it is important that the feeling be accurately linked to that of a migraine headache. Other causes include inner ear infection, fluid in the ears, or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), which is onset by swift changes in position.

    Treatments and Prevention

    • Treatment of migraines with the added symptom of vertigo is no different than treatment of regular migraines. Some may be cured with over-the-counter medicines, and others must be treated with doctor-prescribed calcium channel blockers, antidepressants or beta-blockers.

    Consult Your Physician

    • No matter what you expect to be the cause, headaches combined with vertigo should be brought to your physician's attention right away. Depending on your lifestyle and medical history, there may be other symptoms or problems for which your doctor may wish to test.

Headaches - Related Articles