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Vertigo Specialists- The Best Helping Hand

by Sneha Shukla

Vertigo Specialists- The Best Helping Hand

What is a vertigo?

Vertigo is a situation where the patient suffers utter sensations of movement in their environment. The sensation makes the person feel that the environment around him/her is spinning in circles. This can make them feel dizzy or nauseous sometimes. Vertigos are not a disease it is a symptom of several conditions. To diagnose the correct condition, a vertigo specialist is needed to work on the same. 

Who is a vertigo specialist?

A vertigo specialist is someone who specializes in knowing the inner ear conditions that makes the patient feel inconvenient. An ENT, internist or neurologist might work the best in this condition. They try to diagnose first the reason behind vertigo. Which makes it easy for them to get hold of the main illness. 

What to look for in a vertigo specialist? 

  • Experienced- Try to make sure that the doctor has enough knowledge about these situations of vertigo. Vestibular ailments like Meniere’s illness should be a subject of knowledge for them. A vertigo specialist who have been in operation for a really long time might be best fit for treating severe vertigo cases. 
  • Check for references- Try to find out if the specialist previously treated anyone known. Check for his/her online image of treating cases. Every doctor today stands a virtual image. 
  • Rates- The important part is to check for rates and charges they going to offer for services. See if they might offer cost free consultations. This is the best way to get an idea about the doctor’s character. 

A Vertigo specialistis an extremely known and qualified physician. They easily help patients dealing with vertigo symptoms and issues. They invest years to thorough the subject of vertigo issues. 

Types of vertigo

There are mainly two types of vertigo-

  1. Central vertigo- This is connected to any condition of issue in brain. The issues can be like infection, strokes, brain tumours, brain injuries etc. 
  2. Peripheral vertigo- This happens when the problem is within the ear.

About vertigos

Just like dizziness, a vertigo is also a balance problem. The two symptoms are although different from each other. Dizziness is an overall feeling, where the person feel that his/her entire environment is unbalanced. While in vertigo the person feels that either he/she is moving or the surroundings are completely spinning. Generally, vertigo can occur among people of any age but commonly it is found in people over 65. Gender also affects vertigo affect. Women are found to be more common sufferers in comparison to men. Some women get it as an after-affect of pregnancy. On an average basis, vertigo effects might be in action for a few minutes or a few seconds. But in some cases, it might last up to hours, days, weeks or even months. Vertigo mainly feels like motion sickness. Unbalanced feelings are main issue in this condition. People find it difficult to switch their positions, for example, if a person is sitting and suddenly he/she starts standing he/she might trip feeling that surroundings are spinning. 

Causes of vertigo 

Vertigos might be scary, but the condition itself is not known to be that injurious. Vertigo does not occur due to hereditary. Few main causes of vertigo are-

  • Diabetes
  • Stroke
  • Prolonged bed rest
  • Ear surgery
  • Syphilis
  • Brain disease
  • Acoustic neuroma
  • Migraine headaches
  • Arrhythmia
  • Shingles in or near the ear
  • Peri lymphatic fistula 
  • Ataxia
  • Muscle weaknesses
  • Hyperventilation
  • Blood pressure related issues
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Otosclerosis

How do vertigo specialists diagnose?

The specialist will ask few important questions about symptoms. Physical examinations will be done. They might recommend some tests to know the status. The tests may include-

  • Head impulse test- The examiner will ask the patient to move his/her head on each side, while the focus stays on a stationery object. The main target here so checks the inner ear balance system and if it is working to help control the eye movements of the patient. While the head is in a full course motion. 
  • Fukuda-unterberger’s test- The patient is asked to march in his/her place for a time of 30 seconds with eyes closed. If the patient rotatesto one side, this will mean that the problem is in the inner ear labyrinth. This might result in vertigo sometimes. 
  • Vestibular test battery- This might include a number of tests which help the examiner to identify vertigo. Inner ear problems are detected in this case. Goggles are placed the patient’s eyes to monitor eye movement responses while the eyes move to follow an object of target. Movement of head, and body is also checked. Afterwards, warm and cool water are put in the ear canal. 
  • Romberg’s test- The patient is simply to close his/her eyes with feet together and arms on side. If the patient feels unsteady or unbalanced, this will mean that there is problem with his/her CNS (central nervous system).

What treatment will vertigo specialists offer?

The vertigo treatment is decided on basis of several important factors. The main factor to decide this will be the root cause. Some most notable vertigo treatments to choose from are-

  • Canalith repositioning procedure- This procedure is mainly chosen for people suffering with BPPV, canalith repositioning will help to move or reposition the calcium deposits in inner ear labyrinth. The deposits then will easily be absorbed by human body. 
  • Medications- Medications will include categories of different salts. Medications will be chosen according to the underlying symptoms. If the vertigo is due to an infection, then an antibiotic will be easily prescribed to the patient. Steroids to reduce the inflammation, or any other symptoms like nausea and motion sickness can be treated here too. 
  • Vestibular rehabilitation- This type of treatment will help to overpower the vertigo with normal conditions. This means that other senses will become strong, so that the vertigo will be in a deemed power. This way vertigo episodes will be compensated easily.
  • Surgery- When vertigo is the aftermath or dominant due to underlying severe issues like brain tumours or injury, surgery is the last option. 
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