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Dizziness and balance problems
A guide for patients and carers
Conclusion
Although dizziness can be a symptom of a number of diseases, in practice most cases of dizziness are due to relatively mild disorders of the balance organs of the inner ear (the labyrinth or vestibular organs). Whether you are referred to an ear or a brain specialist, the investigations they carry out and the specialised procedures (e.g. head scans) that you undergo will usually rule out any serious underlying disorder. Doctors recognise that even if the underlying disease is not life-threatening, the resulting dizziness is a nuisance to the affected person and can lead to problems in their social and working lives.
Ten or 20 years ago there was not much that doctors could do to help a person with dizziness apart from prescribing anti-vertiginous, anti-motion sickness tablets. It is now realised that these tablets are only useful for the initial, acute phases of dizziness, when the person is usually almost unable to leave bed.
It has now been shown that all people with dizziness can make a substantial and sustained recovery as long as they make an effort to gradually get back to being physically active, since this helps the process of vestibular compensation. This compensation process can be further assisted by specialised programmes of rehabilitation that are now available in many neurology, ENT, audiology and physiotherapy departments. In addition, the treatment of a common condition called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo or BPPV has been revolutionised by the development of particle repositioning procedures. These procedures are fairly simple head movements guided by the doctor or the therapist that are aimed at clearing the posterior semi-circular canals of the inner ear of particles trapped within them, which are the cause of BPPV.
It has now been shown that all people with dizziness can make a substantial and sustained recovery as long as they make an effort to gradually get back to being physically active, since this helps the process of vestibular compensation. This compensation process can be further assisted by specialised programmes of rehabilitation that are now available in many neurology, ENT, audiology and physiotherapy departments. In addition, the treatment of a common condition called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo or BPPV has been revolutionised by the development of particle repositioning procedures. These procedures are fairly simple head movements guided by the doctor or the therapist that are aimed at clearing the posterior semi-circular canals of the inner ear of particles trapped within them, which are the cause of BPPV.
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