Vertigo & Dizziness Specialist

What is vertigo?

Vertigo is a feeling of lightheadedness, disorientation, and dizziness. You might feel as if the room is spinning or that things around you are moving, even when they’re perfectly still. You might also feel as if you’re being pulled in one direction or that you’re imbalanced. Sometimes this is accompanied by nausea, anxiety, or vomiting.

Vertigo can come in waves, and it can happen infrequently or frequently.

What Causes Vertigo and Dizziness?

Several things can cause vertigo. Sometimes just changing the position of your head or body too quickly can create the sensation of vertigo.

If you experience vertigo regularly, however, it’s probably related to an inner ear problem. A common condition that causes vertigo is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). With BPPV, calcium deposits build up in the inner ear.

Meniere’s disease is another inner ear disorder that can cause vertigo, where the buildup of fluid creates pressure changes in the ear that lead to dizziness or tinnitus.

Vertigo also correlates with inner ear infections that cause inflammation around the ear nerves. In other cases, a head or neck injury, a brain tumor, medication, or a migraine can cause it.

How are Vertigo and Dizziness Treated?

Treatment for vertigo and dizziness is individualized and depends on what’s causing the condition. Sometimes vertigo will go away naturally without treatment, but other times it’s necessary to use medication or other approaches to resolve the symptoms.

Typical treatments for vertigo might include different types of physical therapy, which help to create more balance and better functioning of the inner ear system. Medication can also be helpful to manage symptoms of nausea or dizziness caused by vertigo.

After treating the underlying cause, vertigo will usually resolve on its own. You can reduce your chances of developing vertigo by having ear, nose, and throat checkups regularly and draining your ears after showering or swimming.

To learn more about treating vertigo and dizziness, book a consultation with a physician at Adult & Pediatric Ear, Nose & Throat today.