Define Vertigo

Vertigo is often described as dizziness, yet it's actually much worse than simple dizziness. Vertigo is more accurately described as having a feeling of movement around you. Have you ever gone into an illusion tunnel where the walls are spinning around you, but you're on steady ground? It only takes a moment for you to feel like you're moving in the same manner as the walls, even though you aren't. That feeling of movement when you aren't moving is vertigo.

Causes

• Vertigo is usually caused by a disorder in the vestibular system--the inner ear, vestibular nerve, brain stem and cerebellum. The causes can range from an infection to head injury, dehydration to medication problems, migraines to motion sickness.

Dizziness

• Dizziness and lightheadedness are milder than vertigo. Dizziness is common when standing too quickly, but vertigo will often affect your balance because of the spinning sensation.

Symptoms

• The symptoms of vertigo are a spinning sensation of your body or the world around you, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, earache, loss of balance, trouble standing still and trouble walking.

Prevention

• Ways to prevent vertigo include sleeping with your head raised, to squat instead of bending over, to move slowly when lying down, to sit down if you feel an attack coming and to rest after an attack. It's important to stop smoking, as it increases symptoms in vertigo patients. For motion sickness keep your eyes focused on an unmoving object. Medications and/or physical therapy can also help reduce, and possibly prevent, vertigo attacks as well.

Treatments

• Treatment for vertigo depends on the cause. Infections and motion sickness can be treated with medication. Some doctors will prescribe physical therapy for patients to learn movements that will decrease or improve their vertigo symptoms.