Of interest for those with Vertigo

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Vertigo sufferers may be suprised to learn just how easily curable their

conditions are

Published: Tuesday, 5-Oct-2004 News-Medical.Net

Vertigo sufferers may be thrown off balance to learn just how easily

curable their conditions are. A Baylor College of Medicine study on the

most common form of vertigo illustrates that certain motions, not

medications, can eliminate the vestibular problem’s disorienting

effects.

Dr. Helen Cohen, associate director of the Center for Balance Disorders

at BCM in Houston, found that low-impact exercises successfully resolve

problems caused by benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, referred to as

BPPV.

“Unlike other disorders that are caused by damage to the nerve – a tumor

growing or some metabolic problem in the inner ear – this is a

mechanical problem,” said Cohen. “So the way to fix it is with a

mechanical fix.”

The five-year study, funded by the National Institutes of Health,

compared repositioning exercises to a placebo treatment. The trial

tested several commonly practiced head maneuvers, which were

administered by the physician. Cohen hypothesized correctly that certain

exercises – particularly those that tilted the patient’s head in motions

that relocated displaced calcium particles – were more effective than

others, such as those designed simply to desensitize the patient from

feeling vertigo.

While some conditions that cause vertigo can be treated with medication,

BPPV is not one of them. BPPV creates the illusion of motion caused by

the abnormal reaction of the inner ear balance system to certain head

movements. The disorder occurs when microscopic particles of calcium

carbonite, used to sense the direction of gravity, become dislodged

within the vestibular labyrinth of the inner ear and settle into the

wrong compartments. This displacement causes the patient to experience

vertigo when a change occurs in either the elevation or angle of the

head.

Even though BPPV ranks as the most common form of vertigo (occurring in

64 people per 100,000), very little research has been conducted to

better understand the disorder, likely because it is not life

threatening, according to Cohen.

“It’s very unusual to have somebody with BPPV who is not treatable,”

Cohen said.

Under rare circumstances in which repositioning exercises do not work,

physicians may recommend surgery as a last resort to relocate manually

any displaced particles.

Vertigo creates the illusion of spinning or tilting when a person is not

actually moving. Someone who is lightheaded, on the other hand, feels

like passing out for reasons that do not necessarily involve the inner

ear, such as a cardiac condition.

Cohen said anyone with symptoms of vertigo that last more than one week

should see a physician. Furthermore, Cohen recommends that patients

describe what they are experiencing rather than make vague

generalizations.

“Do not go to your doctor and say, ‘I’m dizzy,’” she said.

Vertigo can occur at any age but is most common around the age of 60.

http://www.bcm.edu