Have dizzy spells? Don't overlook these symptoms

Dizziness is a symptom that triggers serious physical and psychological issues in the body. The majority of people must have experienced giddiness at least once in their lifetime, and yet most of us are less serious about the matter and tend to overlook it. The causes of giddiness may be attributed to varying reasons - mild or grave.

There are times when you get out of bed or tilt your head you experience a false sensation that you are moving or the world around is spinning or rather something is forcefully causing you to fall or feel unsteady. Such a condition is called True Vertigo.

The equilibrium of the body is maintained through the coordinated effort of the brain and other organs of the body such as the ears, eyes, spine, nerves and commissure.

All patients who complain of dizziness need not necessarily suffer from True Vertigo. Quite often conditions such as 'Presyncope' ie; when you experience a darkness of vision or 'Syncope' ie; feeling light-headed are often confused with True Vertigo due to symptoms such as decrease in blood volume, anaemia, dramatic rise or fall in blood pressure level, thyroid, spondylitis, migraine, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, heart problems, diabetes tumour, anxiety.

What is the correlation between ear and balance?

The ear consists of three parts - the exterior ear, middle ear and inner ear. The Vestibular apparatus in the inner ear is responsible for maintaining the balance of the ear. The vestibular nerve sends signals to the brain regarding the orientation and movements of the head.

However, the smooth mechanism of communication to and from the brain gets disrupted due to infections in the ear or vestibular nerve that controls the balance of the ear, and lead to the condition called True Vertigo.

At least 80 per cent of the Vertigo cases emerges out of disequilibrium in the ear, while a small section of cases occurs due to some problems in the brain

Major symptoms of Vertigo

» Feeling of dizziness

» Body tilting towards a direction

» Chronic fatigue

» Ringing in the ears

» Loss of hearing

» Difficulty in hearing

» Vomiting

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo is the common kind of vertigo and is prevalent in women. It causes brief episodes of dizziness that last for a few minutes, usually triggered by intense changes in head position. Calcium carbonate crystals called Otoliths present in the inner ear move around and get into the fluid called Endolymph, resulting in giddiness.

Vertigo can be diagnosed through a test called Dix Hallpike, in addition to doing the hearing test called Audiometry, OAE, ECOG, MRI Scan and blood test. The disorder can be cured through simple exercises such as Repositioning Exercise and Vestibular Habituation Therapy. It is also equally important to take care that bouts of dizzy spells do not recur.

Persons with persistent signs of vertigo should take the caution to get up from bed or chair slowly and try to avoid sudden tilting of the head. Ideally, the person can sleep with the head elevated and avoid jobs that involve tipping your head down for a long duration. To minimise the risk of injury it is best to keep away from activities such as driving, use of machinery, climbing stairs or going near fire or water.

Meniere's disease is another chronic disorder caused by the abnormal rise in pressure of endolymph fluid in the inner ear. The person will experience hours of dizzy spells accompanied by muffled hearing, tinnitus, rumbling in the ear and vomiting. In the event of unsteadiness, it is better to administer Vestibular sedatives in the form of pills or injections. Further treatment options are based on the recurrence of the disorder, and in extreme cases, surgical method is adopted when other methods fail to bring results. Dietary changes such as reduced intake of caffeine and salt can also help in bringing the condition under control.

Bacterial or Viral infection

Labyrinthitis, the inflammation of the inner ear due to infection, or Vestibular Neuronitis may also lead to giddiness.

There could be significant other reasons for dizzy spells. The presence of Peri Labyrinthine Fistula in the inner ear either by birth or due to head trauma, Semicircular canal dehiscence, Labyrinthine Concussion, Posterior Circulation ie; the stroke affecting the cerebellum - the region that controls balance in the brain, tumour in the brain are other factors that result in giddiness.