What is Vertigo? Dizziness, Vertigo, Causes

Patient information on Dizziness (Vertigo)

This information is for patients, families and carers with a diagnosis of dizziness.

Dizziness is a feeling that may be hard to describe, but often includes a feeling that you are spinning or tilting or that you are about to fall or pass out.
Dizziness can also cause you to feel light-headed or to have difficulty walking straight.
Many people who feel dizzy have vertigo, a specific type of dizziness.
Vertigo causes a sense of spinning dizziness, swaying or tilting.
You may feel that you are moving or that the room is moving around you.

Inner ear problems: collections of calcium(canalithsin BPPV, read information about Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo), inflammation and certain infections can cause problems in the vestibular (balance) system of the ear
Head injury: can affect the vestibular system in a variety of ways and lead to dizziness
Medications: rarely, some medications can damage the inner ear. Other medications can affect the function of the inner ear or brain and lead to dizziness. Some medications can cause sudden drops in blood pressure
Migraines: some migraines can result in dizziness, even without a headache(e.g. Vestibular Migraine
Brain problems: some brain problems such as strokes or multiple sclerosis can cause dizziness, but these rarely cause dizziness alone, and you will have other symptoms such as weakness of a limb, slurred speech, or facial asymmetry
Heart problems: an abnormal heart rhythm or drop in blood pressure can result in feeling faint or light headed, due to a sudden decrease in blood to the brain.
Alcohol and drugs: your balance can be affected by drinking too much or taking certain non-prescription drugs.

Several treatment options are available and will depend on the cause of your dizziness.
You may be prescribed Cawthorne-Cooksey balance exercises as a form of general vestibular (balance) rehabilitation, regardless of the underlying cause.

The purpose of Cawthorne-Cooksey exercises is to train the brain to compensate for the imbalance between the two ears. Frequent repetition of the exercises will usually lead to improvement in dizziness and balance.
You shouldn’t try to perform all the exercises at once. Rather, you should perform a group of exercises at a time,starting at the top of the list. You should concentrate on performing only the exercises that cause dizziness. When you can perform a section of exercises without feeling dizzy, you should move to the next group down the page.

Sitting
1. Eye movements –at first slowly, then quickly:
  - Up and down
  - From side to side
  - Focus on finger with arm extended and slowly move finger towards face until vision starts to blur
2. Head movements –at first slowly, then quickly (later with eyes closed):
  - Bend forward and backward
  - Turn from side to side
3. Bend forward and pick up objects from the ground
Standing
- Follow steps 1 to 3 described above while standing
- Change from sitting to standing position with eyes open and shut
- Throw a small ball from hand to hand (above eye level)
- Change from sitting to standing position and make a full turn in between
Moving about
- Circle around a centre person who will throw a ball back and forth
- Walk across a room with eyes open and then closed
- Walk up and down a slope with eyes open and then closed
- Walk up and down steps with eyes open and then closed
- Any game involving bending, stretching and aiming such as tennis, bowls or basket ball

You need to stop driving if you get sudden, unexpected and disabling attacks of dizziness
You should inform your employer if dizziness could pose a risk to yourself or others in your job
To avoid falls around the home, get out of bed slowly and avoid jobs around the house which make you dizzy

You can contact your ENT Specialist at the Melbourne ENT Group (MEG):

Your GP is also the best contact for ongoing care and concerns.