Treatments for dizziness and vertigo depend on the cause. The cause of dizziness can be difficult to identify. Stroke, abnormal blood pressure, low blood sugar, irregular heart rhythms and vertigo can all cause dizziness. Where dizziness may cause a feeling of weakness or fainting, vertigo makes the world seem like it is tilting or shifting. Proprioception, the sense of where your body is in space, is affected. For example, you may feel upside down when you are standing.
Identify The Problem
Is the problem dizziness or actual vertigo? Dr. Randy Swartz, lead author for the article “Treatment of Vertigo” published in a March 2005 issue of the “American Family Physician” journal, says identifying the cause of dizziness and vertigo is difficult; however, establishing how long the symptoms have been going on and whether or not an ear disorder is present can help narrow down the cause.
In addition to the health problems listed earlier, motion sickness, psychiatric problems, medications and infections may all cause dizziness. In most cases, treating the underlying cause of dizziness will resolve the problem. Adjusting medication dosages, treating infections, and controlling blood pressure and blood sugar can eliminate dizziness.
Change Position Slowly
According to Donna D. Ignatavicius, M.S., R.N., and M. Linda Workman, Ph.D., authors of “Medical-Surgical Nursing--Critical Thinking for Collaborative Care,” a common cause of dizziness is postural hypotension, or low blood pressure caused by position changes. Getting up slowly is the best way to treat this cause of dizziness. When getting up from lying down, first sit on the side of the bed and let your feet dangle; this will give your blood pressure time to adjust. After a couple of minutes, stand up and wait another minute before walking.
Medication
Scott and White Hospital patient information on dizziness explains that treatment of dizziness and vertigo often includes using medications. Medicines that control nausea and vomiting help alleviate the symptoms of dizziness while the underlying cause is identified. If vertigo lasts more than a few days, the cause may be permanent damage to the vestibule, the middle part of the inner ear. In this case, medicine will not help.
Vestibular Rehabilitation Exercises
A person experiencing vertigo receives distorted information from the brain regarding what position he is in. Balance and walking are impaired. In the case of permanent damage to the vestibule, exercises can be used to train the brain to adjust to new visual and proprioceptive signals.
Head Rotation Maneuvers
Vertigo caused by calcium deposits in the semicircular canals of the ear is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. This type of vertigo can be treated by head rotation maneuvers that help remove calcium deposits from the semicircular canals. Your physician will decide if this treatment of dizziness and vertigo is appropriate for you. There is more than one method as well, so work with your physician to determine which method of head rotation maneuvers to try.
References
- “American Family Physician Journal; Treatment of Vertigo; Randy Swartz, M.D., & Paxton Longwell, M.D.; March 2005.
- “Medical-Surgical Nursing - Critical Thinking for Collaborative Care”; Donna D. Ignatavicius MS RN, & M. Linda Workman Ph.D.; 2006
- Scott and White Hospital: “Dizziness”
