Vertigo, or dizziness, is a symptom, not a disease. The term vertigo refers to the sensation of spinning or whirling that occurs as a result of a disturbance in balance (equilibrium). It also may be used to describe feelings of dizziness, lightheadedness, faintness, and unsteadiness. The sensation of movement is called subjective vertigo and the perception of movement in surrounding objects is called objective vertigo.

Vertigo usually occurs as a result of a disorder in the vestibular system (i.e., structures of the inner ear, the vestibular nerve, brainstem, and cerebellum). The vestibular system is responsible for integrating sensory stimuli and movement and for keeping objects in visual focus as the body moves.

When the head moves, signals are transmitted to the labyrinth, which is an apparatus in the inner ear that is made up of three semicircular canals surrounded by fluid. The labyrinth then transmits movement information to the vestibular nerve and the vestibular nerve carries the information to the brainstem and cerebellum (areas of the brain that control balance, posture, and motor coordination). There are a number of different causes for dizzy spells.

Incidence and Prevalence Vertigo is one of the most common health problems in adults. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), about 40% of people in the United States experience feeling dizzy at least once during their lifetime. Prevalence is slightly higher in women and increases with age.

Home Remedies for Vertigo

Tips 1:Soak 2 tbsp wheat grain, 1 tsp poppy seeds (khus-khus), 8 almonds,8 water melon seeds and make a paste. Heat 1 tsp ghee fry 2 cloves in this add to the paste mix with milk and drink everyday for a week.

Tips 2:Soak 1 tsp of alma (gooseberry) powder along with 1 tsp coriander seeds. Leave over night. Strain and add 1/2 tsp sugar and drink.

Common Causes of Vertigo
Due to the free-floating calcium carbonate crystals in the posterior semicircular
Canal An infection in the ear fore example syphilis
Vision problems
Acute head injury
Cardiac conditions
Brain tumors
Thyroid disease
Anemia
Calcium disorders
Motion sickness
Insufficient blood supply to brain
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Diabetes

Head and Neck Medical Findings

Some 37 original articles are featured in the October, 2004, edition of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, the peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Foundation. This issue can be accessed at http://www.mosby.com/oto; abstracts of the articles can be viewed online. Among the new research studies are: 1. Proton pump inhibitor therapy for chronic laryngo-pharyngitis: A randomized placebo-control trial. Inflammation of the larynx and pharynx can lead to hoarseness or even loss of voice. Researchers from Cincinnati explore the effectiveness of proton pump inhibitors, medicine often used in treating severe gastro esophageal reflux, but also suggested as a treatment for chronic laryngo-pharyngitis. 2. Vocal fold augmentation with calcium hydroxylapatite: Calcium hydroxylapatite has been used for dental applications where bone build-up is needed for reconstruction and also in block form for cosmetic applications such as cheek, jaw, cranial, and chin implants. New research examines whether injection of this material for augmentation of the vocal folds is effective in treating vocal fold atrophy, part of the normal aging process, with up to 60 percent of 60-year-old individuals displaying evidence of such glottal insufficiency. 3. Laser cryptolysis for the treatment of halitosis: Good dental hygiene alone cannot help those who suffer from chronic fetid (foul smelling) tonsillitis. Israeli researchers have found confirmed that laser application to accumulated bacterial and other material in the tonsil crypts provide relief to those conscious of their bad breath. 4. Severe hypertrophy of the base of the tongue in adults: An unnatural increase in the size of tongue base follicles is rare in adults. Researchers in otolaryngology in Brazil have concluded from their research that the frequency of hypertrophied follicles is found with gastro-esophageal reflex (GER). Consequently, hypertrophy of the tongue base symptoms are confused with those of GER, except for nasal voice and noisy respiration. 5. Safety of outpatient tonsillectomy in children: A review of six years in a tertiary hospital experience: A major retrospective study of children undergoing outpatient tonsillectomy in a major hospital has found that approximately one in 11 children had post-operative complications with three percent experiencing major bleeding. 6. Pediatric temporal bone fractures in a rural population: Temporal bone fractures can have serious consequences for the facial nerve, middle ear, inner ear, and intracranial contents. These fractures are commonly associated with head trauma, occurring in 30 to 75 percent of adult blunt head traumas and six to 14 percent of pediatric blunt head traumas. Pennsylvania otolaryngologists have found that in a rural environment animal-related injuries were the second most common cause of fractures in children five and younger. Such injuries were caused by dog attacks, horse falls and tramplings, and cow kicks. 7. Hearing loss in steel band musicians: Steel band musicians delight lovers of music. But fans of this West Indian music should realize new research findings reveal that the performers suffer permanent auditory damage from their instrument's high-intensity sound levels and that preventative measures are required to prevent this hearing loss, particularly in younger players. 8. Diagnostic, pathophysiologic, and therapeutic aspects of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo: Greek researchers describes the advances in understanding how benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, the most common peripheral vestibular disorder is generated, and discuss the current therapeutic modalities. 9. Harmonic Scalpel versus cold knife dissection in superficial parotidectomy: The parotid gland is the largest of the glands that produce saliva important in the digestion of food. The gland lies under the angle of the jaw just beneath the ear. Surgery of the parotid gland may become necessary in the presence of infection or tumor. The Harmonic Scalpel has been found to provide improved operative time, less blood loss, and decreased facial nerve injury compared with conventional techniques in thyroid surgery. Now the procedures are compared for parotid gland removal. 10. Revision cochlear implant surgery: Causes and outcome: Cochlear implantation is not necessary a one-time surgical procedure. Recipients of this technology to assist the deaf have found it necessary to have the device re-inserted into the inner ear for reasons related to device failure or upgrade. A new research effort explores the success of repeating this surgery. These, and 27 other research findings are available in the October, 2004, edition of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

A microscopic reason!

Scientists may have pinpointed a microscopic reason why people suffering from the most common type of vertigo experience a distinct time lag between a rapid head motion and the onset of dizziness. The explanation, the researchers say, could be that it takes five to six seconds for minuscule crystals in the inner ear to sediment after the head moves suddenly, an event that can set a dizzy spell in motion. The team of engineers and physicians from Harvard University, the California Institute of Technology, and Northwestern University reports in the August issue of the Journal of Biomechanics on a mathematical model they've developed to support this theory on the cause of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). "While BPPV is not life-threatening, it induces disorientation that is severely discomforting and can cause nausea and accidents," says Howard A. Stone, Harvard College Professor and Gordon McKay Professor of Chemical Engineering and Applied Mechanics in Harvard's Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences. "We used hydrodynamic models to show that if tiny particles in the inner ear become dislodged, which researchers have previously posited as the trigger for BPPV attacks, the period of time for these particles to fall far enough to adversely impact pressure within the inner ear roughly matches the typical lapse between a head tilt and onset of vertigo." BPPV is a mechanical disorder originating in the vestibular system within the inner ear, where three fluid-filled semicircular canals detect head rotation about each of three axes. Many researchers believe BPPV attacks are triggered when calcite particles called otoconia, which normally reside in the inner ear, dislodge and interfere with proper functioning of these semicircular canals. The disorder is characterized by a lag of several seconds between a rapid head movement and the onset of a debilitating spinning sensation. Along with Harvard undergraduate Michael S. Weidman, Todd M. Squires at Caltech, and Timothy C. Hain of Northwestern, Stone examined whether this delay might coincide with movement of otoconia. Their fluid-modeling work showed that the latency characteristic of BPPV nearly matches the amount of time it would take for loose otoconia to detrimentally affect pressure within the semicircular canals of the vestibular system. "Otoconia are tiny, generally just a minute fraction of a millimeter, but still large enough to cause disruptions in the inner ear," Stone says. "The otoconia settle over a period of five to six seconds to a point where the semicircular canals undergo a significant reduction in radius, increasing the pressure within the semicircular canals and possibly leading to dizziness." BPPV is also known as "top-shelf vertigo," since attacks are often prompted by a sudden tilting back of the head, as if to look at objects on a high shelf. It is the most commonly diagnosed type of vertigo, with some studies suggesting that it affects 9 percent of older individuals. Treatment for BPPV is purely mechanical, involving a set of head motions (a common version is called the Epley maneuver) that are believed to flush otoconia from the sensitive semicircular canals. Hain, a medical scientist who studies motor control of the head and neck, originally sought Stone's assistance in studying the possible role of fluid dynamics in BPPV. Stone says that he, Squires, and Weidman, none of whom are physicians, bring a different perspective to a medical ailment that's largely mechanical in nature. In addition, Stone and his collaborators are able to provide other quantitative insights useful for characterizing BPPV. "This is a new way of thinking for the medical community, which tends to look at problems differently than engineers or physicists might," he says. "Because of its mechanical nature, BPPV may be an illness that requires a degree of cooperation between physicians and engineers."Contact: Steve Bradtsteve_bradt@harvard.edu617-496-8070Harvard University

Dr. Dave and Dr. Dee

Dear Dr. Dave and Dr. Dee,I've been dizzy off and on for the past several days, with a spinning sensation. Sometimes it feels like the ground tilts while I'm walking. This morning when I woke up and looked at the alarm clock it was spinning. When I went to get up, I rolled out of bed and fell on the floor. Then I felt OK and went to work. I felt some little twinges during the day. It's scaring me. I would see a doctor, but I don't have any money.Signed,DizzyDear Dizzy,Vertigo is a type of dizziness that's characterized by the sensation of spinning. It's sometimes referred to as a hallucination of motion. Imagine what it would feel like to be placed suddenly on a roller coaster that won't stop, and you begin to understand the alarming symptom of vertigo.A fairly common cause of vertigo is labyrinthitis (explanation below). This type of vertigo may occur after a flu-like illness, severe ear infection, or may have no clear cause. It's usually self-limited, meaning it goes away all by itself. But it may intermittently reappear over weeks to months. Bouts of vertigo are commonly treated with meclizine (Antivert).Vertigo can also result from other vestibular (balance center) disorders. Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is thought to be caused by tiny loose particles floating freely in the fluid (endolymph) of the vestibular system. Meniere's disease is a chronic condition that causes vertigo associated with ringing or roaring and progressive hearing loss in the affected ear(s). Other causes of vertigo include vestibular neuronitis (inflammation of the vestibular nerves), and post traumatic vertigo, which may occur after an injury to the head involving the inner ear structures. Sometimes vertigo may be a symptom of a more serious underlying illness such as a stroke or tumor.So, anyone with the symptom of vertigo should be seen immediately by a doctor in order to determine the cause. If you can't get in by appointment, then obtain a ride to your local emergency room. They're well equipped to do the required initial evaluation, and provide relief from the unpleasant symptoms, regardless of one's ability to pay. Don't drive or operate machinery until cleared by your physician.

WHAT IS LABYRINTHITIS? People sometimes refer to labyrinthitis as an inner ear infection, but it usually isn't due to an actual ear infection. In the most general terms, it is a condition that causes irritation of tiny structures such as microscopic hair cells which project into fluid-filled canals (labyrinths) within the vestibular system located deep in the inner ear. Normal balance is, to a degree, controlled by movement of fluid and particles in the labyrinths, in response to changes of body position. This causes the hair cells to send electrical impulses to the brain helping to define the body's orientation. In labyrinthitis the hair cells and other structures in the labyrinths have become irritated or inflamed. They discharge randomly, sending chaotic messages to the brain, tricking the brain into thinking you or your surroundings are moving or spinning.

soucre-http://www.drdaveanddee.com/dizziness.html

Synonyms and Keywords Related to Vertigo

Synonyms and Keywords
vertigo, dizzy, dizziness, disequilibrium, lightheaded, benign positional vertigo, Meniere disease, labyrinthitis, migraine, acoustic neuroma, cerebellar hemorrhage, hearing loss, tinnitus

Vertigo Outlook

The prognosis depends on the source of the vertigo.
Vertigo caused by problems in the inner ear, while usually self-limited, in some cases can become completely incapacitating. The use of drugs and rehabilitation exercises are the mainstay of treatment. Most commonly this will make the symptoms completely go away or make the condition tolerable.
The prognosis of vertigo from a brain lesion depends on the amount of damage done to the central nervous system. All vertigo caused by a brain lesion needs emergency evaluation by a neurologist and neurosurgeon.

It was March 21 when Luis Castillo stepped into the on-deck circle at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Fla., for some practice swings, took one cut and watched the weighted donut fly off the end of his bat and smack Twins hitting coach Joe Vavra in the side of the head.
Vavra downplayed the severity of his injury, but the puddle of blood coming from a cut on his right ear kept getting bigger. He went to a hospital, underwent tests, received stitches on his ear and was back throwing batting practice in the cage at the ballpark by the end of the game.
In subsequent days - weeks, even - Vavra began to feel the effects of his head injury more and more. Vertigo set in and lasted for more than a month, and Vavra said it has been just more than 10 days since the dizziness subsided.

While the vertigo lingered, Vavra's thoughts were clouded and his patterns skewed. Nothing seemed right, not simple everyday tasks and not his job as hitting coach. Certainly the Twins' offensive tailspin in recent weeks can't be traced to one particular thing, but that sunny afternoon in Florida knocked Vavra out of his routine, and when his went, Vavra believes some of his hitters' routines suffered as well.

"We had a lot of routines going last year," Vavra said while sitting in the Twins' dugout at the Metrodome last week, "and everybody was locked into a pretty good one, whether it was five, 10 minutes a day. Maybe at the start of the year when I wasn't physically functioning as well as should have, maybe a couple of them backed off."
A few days after the incident, which actually fractured Vavra's skull and caused a deep cut on his right ear, he started feeling nauseous and dizzy. He took a spring road trip or two off and tried to rest, but that's not his nature.

He was back in the clubhouse quickly, with a bandage on his ear to cover the cut and a façade that made people think he felt fine.
For the first two weeks, Vavra said he didn't want to drive at all. When he did, his vertigo would put his world in an uncomfortable spin. At a stop sign, Vavra would put both feet on the break as the cars around him, though stationary, seemed to keep moving.
"I was very unsure of my surroundings," he said.

"Everything seemed to be moving around me. I felt like I could control my balance, but it was like everything else was just a little off-center."
It wasn't just driving. Vavra would reach into the bucket of balls during batting practice, stand up, and things around him would start moving. Or he would turn around too quickly and, again, nothing would stand still, forcing Vavra to sit until the room stopped spinning around him.
Throwing batting practice, he said, provided the biggest challenge.
"I wasn't necessarily out of the strike zone," Vavra said, "but I couldn't control exactly where I wanted to go, which is half of the battle of early batting practice, locating the pitch so that you can work on a certain area with some consistency.

"From analyzing to physically doing the work, it was like I didn't feel like I had the confidence to do any of it. It was pretty strange."
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said the team's problems at the plate surely stem more from players' injuries than Vavra's vertigo. It was hard to know, he said, when to spell the hitting coach because Vavra never let anyone know he wasn't feeling well until a bout of dizziness had passed.

Gardenhire and his staff easily recognized Vavra's most obvious symptom, though - occasionally he would start talking to himself. He had such a difficult time trying to reach a conclusion that he sometimes talked things through aloud.

Nice to know

People whose balance is affected by vertigo should take precautions to prevent injuries from falls. Those with risk factors for stroke should control their high blood pressure and high cholesterol and stop smoking. Someone with Meniere disease should limit added salt to their diet.

Anyone with a new diagnosis of vertigo should follow up with their doctor or be referred directly to a neurologist or ENT specialist.

Medications that are commonly prescribed for Vertigo

Commonly prescribed medications include the following:
Meclizine hydrochloride (Antivert)
Diphenhydramine (Benadryl)
Scopolamine transdermal patch
Promethazine hydrochloride (Phenergan)
Diazepam (Valium)
Take these medications only as directed by and under the supervision of your doctor.

Treatment- home and medical

Home therapy should only be undertaken if you have already been diagnosed with vertigo and are under the close supervision of a doctor.

Medical Treatment

The choice of treatment will depend on the diagnosis.
Vertigo can be treated with medicine you take by mouth, through medicine placed on the skin (as a patch), or drugs given through an IV.
Specific types of vertigo may require additional treatment and referral:
Bacterial infection of the middle ear requires antibiotics.
For Meniere disease, in addition to symptomatic treatment, people might be placed on a low salt diet and may require medication used to increase urine output.
A hole in the inner ear causing recurrent infection may require referral to an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist for surgery.
In addition to the drugs used for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, several physical maneuvers can be used to treat the condition.
Vestibular rehabilitation exercises consist of having you sit on the edge of a table and lie down to one side until the vertigo resolves followed by sitting up and lying down on the other side, again until the vertigo ceases. This is repeated until the vertigo is no longer inducible.
Particle repositioning maneuver is a treatment based on the idea that the condition is caused by small stones in the inner ear. Your head is repositioned to move the stones to their normal position. This maneuver should be repeated until the abnormal eye movements are no longer visible.

Exams and tests associated with Vertigo

The evaluation of vertigo consists primarily of a medical history and physical exam.
The history is comprised of 4 basic areas. The doctor will ask you about the following areas:
During the exam, the doctor will want to find out if true vertigo exists. The doctor will want to know if you feel any sensation of motion. Report any nausea, vomiting, sweating, and any abnormal eye movements.
The doctor will ask about how long you have had symptoms and whether they are constant or come and go. Do the symptoms occur when you move or change position? Are you currently taking any new medications? Has there been any recent head trauma or whiplash injury?
Are there any other hearing symptoms? Specifically, report any ringing in the ears or hearing loss.
Do you have weakness, visual disturbances, altered level of consciousness, difficulty walking, abnormal eye movements, or difficulty speaking?
The doctor may perform special tests such as a CT scan if a brain injury is suspected to be the cause of vertigo. The use of blood tests, specifically to check blood sugar levels, and the use of an ECG to look at the heart rhythm may also be helpful.

When to seek medical care

Any signs and symptoms of vertigo warrant an evaluation by your doctor. The majority of cases of vertigo are harmless. And although vertigo can be extremely debilitating, it is easily treated with prescription medication. Have your doctor check out any new signs and symptoms of vertigo to rule out any potentially serious or life-threatening causes.
Certain signs and symptoms of vertigo may require evaluation in a hospital's emergency department:
Double vision
Headache
Weakness
Difficulty speaking
Abnormal eye movements
Altered level of consciousness, not acting appropriately, or difficulty arousing
Difficulty walking or controlling your arms and legs

This is very important to do...

It is very important to determine if vertigo truly exists. Vertigo implies that there is a sensation of motion either of the person or the environment. This should not be confused with symptoms of lightheadedness or fainting.
To determine if true vertigo exists, you must describe a sensation of disorientation or motion. In addition, you may also have any or all of these symptoms:
Nausea or vomiting
Sweating
Abnormal eye movements
The duration can be from minutes to hours and can be constant or episodic. The onset may be due to movement or change in position. It is important to tell your doctor about any recent head trauma or whiplash injury as well as any new medications you may be taking.
You may have hearing loss and a ringing sensation in your ears.
You might have visual disturbances, weakness, difficulty speaking, decreased level of consciousness, and difficulty walking.

Overview and causes

Vertigo is the feeling that you or your environment is moving when no movement occurs. Imprecisely called dizziness, the term vertigo is the specific term used to describe an illusion of movement. Unlike nonspecific lightheadedness or dizziness, vertigo has relatively few causes.

Vertigo can be caused by problems in the brain or the inner ear.
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common form of vertigo and is characterized by the sensation of motion initiated by sudden head movements.
Vertigo may also be caused by inflammation within the inner ear. This is known as labyrinthitis. This condition is characterized by the sudden onset of vertigo and may be associated with hearing loss.
Meniere disease is composed of a triad of symptoms: episodes of vertigo, ringing in the ears, and hearing loss. People have the abrupt onset of severe vertigo, fluctuating hearing loss, as well as periods in which they are symptom-free.
Acoustic neuroma is a type of tumor causing vertigo. Symptoms include vertigo with one-sided ringing in the ear and hearing loss.
Vertigo can be caused by decreased blood flow to the brain and base of the brain. Bleeding into the back of the brain is known as cerebellar hemorrhage and is characterized by vertigo, headache, difficulty walking, and inability to look toward the side of the bleed. The result is that the person's eyes gaze away from the side with the problem. Walking is also extremely impaired.
Vertigo is often the presenting symptom in multiple sclerosis. The onset is usually abrupt, and examination of the eyes may reveal the inability of the eyes to move past the midline toward the nose.
Head trauma and neck injury may also result in vertigo, which usually goes away on its own.
Migraine, a severe form of headache, may also cause vertigo. The vertigo is usually followed by a headache. There is often a prior history of similar episodes but no lasting problems.

The Causes

Inner ear
benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
labyrinthitis and vestibular neuronitis
Ménière's disease
perilymphatic fistula
neurinoma of the acoustic nerve

Central Nervous System

posterior fossa neoplasm
concussion
migraine
multiple sclerosis posterior circulation stroke

Vertigo Overview

Vertigo is the feeling that you or your environment is moving when no movement occurs. Imprecisely called dizziness, the term vertigo is the specific term used to describe an illusion of movement. Unlike nonspecific lightheadedness or dizziness, vertigo has relatively few causes.

from- emedicinehealth.com

Vertigo and instabilities

In some cases ligamental injuries of the upper cervical spine result in head-neck-joint instabilities which can cause vertigo. Instabilities of the head neck joint are affected by rupture or overstretching of the alar ligaments and/or capsule structures mostly caused by whiplash or similar biomechanical movements. If patients describe prolonged vertigo after a whiplash trauma, professionals should think about ligamental damage of head-neck-joint structures.
Symptoms during damaged alar ligaments besides vertigo often are
dizziness
reduced vigilance, such as somnolence
seeing problems, such as seeing "stars", tunnel views or double contures.
Some patients tell about unreal feelings that stands in correlation with:
depersonalisation and attentual alterations
Most medical professionals don't know about the disease complex of head-neck-joint instabilities. Often the patients are having an odyssey of medical consultations without any clear diagnosis and are then sent to psychatrist because doctors think about depression or hypochondry. Standard imaging technologies such as CAT or MRI are not capable of finding instabilities without taking functional poses.

Vertigo...

Associated symptoms of vertigo include motor or sensory deficits, dysarthria (slurred speech) or ataxia. Causes include things such as migraines, multiple sclerosis or tumors. Less commonly, strokes, seizures, trauma or infections can cause also central vertigo.

Vertigo should not be confused with dizziness. Dizziness is an unpleasant feeling of light-headedness, giddiness or fuzziness often accompanied by nausea.

Vertigo is often incorrectly used to describe a fear of heights. This is due to a false etymology that associates "vertigo" with "vertical."
Vertigo is often experienced when breathing helium, as a result of decreased oxygen flow to the brain. Klinefelter's Syndrome people with this condition - have enhanced spatial thinking capabilities, so might be more susceptible to vertigo - research is ongoing.