Dizziness or vertigo is a feeling of being off centre, which makes a patient feel like there is lack of balance. This is especially apparent when one is at a height or while wearing footwear with high heels. It may be caused due to a variety of causes, and ear problems are one of the primary causes of this kind of dizziness. Let us take a look at the various ear problems and how they can cause dizziness or vertigo.


1. Infection: the bacteria or virus that causes cold and loose motions can also cause an ear infection. This can give rise to temporary vertigo which may last up to six weeks or more. Dizziness or vertigo happens in such cases because the viral effect spreads to the inner ear which causes a ringing and off balance sensation. The general physician or ent specialist will usually prescribe a round of medicines only if the condition becomes too severe to handle.


2. Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo: this kind of dizziness is also known as bppv and may be caused due to the motion of a calcium particle known as otolith, in the ear. This can cause a fluttering movement that gives the sensation of falling down or losing balance. This usually takes place in the part of the ear that catches the sensation of gravity. The movement of the otolith can make the patient feel as if his or her head is turning or swaying, while in reality the patient may be stationery. This problem can be fixed with the help of a two minute therapy known as epley manoeuvre, which can be conducted easily in the ent specialist's clinic.


3. Meniere's disease: there is actually a specific condition that is characterised primarily by dizzy spells and vertigo. The other symptoms of this ear bone condition include ringing of the ears, loss of hearing, and the feeling of fullness or pressure build up in the ears. This can be fixed with therapy and drugs as well as hearing loss aids.


4. Dandy's syndrome: this is an ear condition where the patient constantly feels like he or she is bouncing up and down. This condition hits patients who are on antibiotic medication for any kind of infection, and it subsides once the medication is done with. It occurs in such cases because certain kinds of antibiotics may be toxic for the ear. One may also see natural improvement in the condition over the passage of time.


5. Tumours: other reasons like tumours and strokes can also cause vertigo on a temporary or permanent basis.


Dizziness due to ear problems can be due to a number of mild to severe reasons. It is best to get these causes checked.

How Ear Problems Can Cause Dizziness

Vertigo is marked by a feeling of dizziness and disorientation. This feeling could be so bad that even standing up makes a person feel lightheaded. Vertigo can even make a person feel nauseous. 

The five most common causes of vertigo are:

Meniere s disease: Meniere s disease is a condition that affects the inner ear. It is marked by a buildup of fluid in the inner ear as a result of a viral infection, allergies or an injury to the ear. Along with dizziness, it can also cause a ringing noise in the ears, the feeling of having plugged ears and hearing loss. Vertigo caused by Meniere s disease can last for months.
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV): This is one of the most common triggers of vertigo. This condition is caused by small crystals that break free and float in the inner ear canals. These canals are known as semicircular canals. Vertigo caused by BPPV is usually short-lived and relieves itself is a few minutes. Moving the head in a certain way or jerky movements can trigger vertigo in such cases. The exact cause of this condition is not clear but it has been often associated with severe head trauma.
Labyrinthitis: This condition is also known as vestibular neuritis. It is marked by swelling and irritation of the two vestibular nerves in the inner ear canal. Labyrinthitis may be caused by a viral infection or an inner ear infection. In such cases, vertigo may be accompanied by hearing loss. Older adults are at the highest risk of this condition.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency: A simple vitamin deficiency can also cause vertigo and dizziness. Vitamin B12 helps prevent anaemia and keeps nerves and blood cells healthy. Low levels of this vitamin can cause neurological problems that in turn cause vertigo. This is because vitamin deficiencies reduce blood pressure and blood flow to the brain. A simple blood test can help check Vitamin B1 levels and identify a deficiency. Some of the best sources of vitamin B12 are dairy products, meats and fortified cereals.
Dehydration: 60% of the human body mass is water. Water plays a number of roles in the human body. One of the most important functions of water is the circulation of nutrients in the body and blood flow. Thus, even mild dehydration can make a person feel dizzy and nauseous. This type of vertigo may be relieved by drinking copious amounts of fluids. 

Vertigo - 5 Most Common Problems That Can Lead To It!

Vertigo is a medical condition where the affected person feels that the world or surrounding environment is spinning or moving. It is accompanied with nausea, vomiting, sweating and having problems in walking steadily. Moving your head worsens this condition. An illusion of movement is observed.

Vertigo arises from several conditions. There are mainly two types of Vertigo-

Peripheral Vertigo: This is the most common vertigo and is caused often due to a problem in the balance mechanism of the inner ear. The causes include:

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: Being one of the common causes of vertigo, BPPV occurs due to certain head movements when standing up or bending over. The attacks are short, powerful and recurrent in nature. Nausea is also accompanied. A feeling of lightheadedness and despaired balance is observed after the attack. Fragments of calcium carbonate crystals are broken off from the channel linings present in the inner ear. These fragments cause the problem by getting into the ear fluid canals, and certain head movement sweeps them across the canal causing vertigo.

Head Injury: Vertigo develops due to head injuries, and the symptoms are similar to that of dizziness.
Labyrinthitis: It is an infection in the inner ear, which causes the labyrinth of the ear to get inflamed. The labyrinth controls our hearing and balance. An inflammation causes it to send different information than the other, normal ear. This conflict causes vertigo. Such vertigo can be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, loss of hearing and ear pain.

Vestibular Neuronitis: This is a condition pertaining to the inner ear, which causes inflammation of the nerve which connects the labyrinth to the brain. The condition arises from viral infections. Nausea and vomiting are observed, and this condition leads to vertigo.

Meniere's Disease: This rare condition in the inner ear causes severe vertigo along with hearing loss and aural fullness. Meniere's disease prompts sudden vertigo attacks with nausea and vomiting.
Central Vertigo: Central vertigo arises from problems in the cerebellum of the brain and brainstem. Causes include:

Migraines.
Sclerosis, a condition which affects the central nervous system.
Acoustic neuroma, a type of brain cancer growing on the acoustic nerve.
Brain tumors, stroke or transient ischemic attack.
Certain medications.
Treatment-
Treatment of vertigo depends on the cause and on the extent of symptoms. Labyrinthis and vestibular neuronitis are cured by vestibular rehabilitation and medication. BBVV is treated using a process called the Epley maneuver. Meniere's disease is cured by modes of dietary restriction, medication, treating tinnitus and treating hearing loss. Generally, curing the cause of vertigo helps in healing the disorder.

Vertigo is caused by different reasons and factors and rectification of these factors helps in the treatment of vertigo.

Vertigo: Causes and Treatment

Dizziness is usually described as variety of sensations, which comprise of a feeling of faintness, unsteady, weak, light headed, giddy or woozy. When dizziness causes a false feeling of spinning and the moving surroundings is known as vertigo.

Dizziness can be one of the most common reasons for a visit to the doctor. However, constant feeling of dizziness can affect a person's life drastically, but it is rarely life threatening. The treatment of dizzy sensation and dizziness mostly depends on the symptoms.

Causes of dizziness
The common causes of dizziness are medication, motion sickness and ear problems, especially disturbances of the inner ear. An injury, infection or poor blood circulation can also lead to dizziness. The triggers of dizziness and the sensations it provides are used to evaluate the cause. Also, the duration of the dizziness and the symptoms lead to a clue towards the cause of the same.

Dizziness caused by the inner ear problems
The balance of the body depends on the combined effort of many parts of the sensory system. These are:

1. Sensory nerves: these send messages to the brain in regard to the body positions and its movements
2. Inner ear: the inner ear has the organ of corti which are responsible for detecting the motions and thereby help in the balance of the body.

In vertigo a person might feel that the things around them are moving, thus creating a swaying or a spinning motion. Vertigo is usually caused by the problems of the inner ear. 

The common causes are:

1. Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (bppv), this happens when the calcium particles accumulate in the inner ear canals. The inner ear is responsible for the body movements and balance.

2. Meniere's disease, a problem of the inner ear mainly caused by the build up of the fluids, thereby leading to a change in pressure. This causes vertigo along with hearing loss and tinnitus.

3. Vestibular neuritis is the problem of the inner ear and is largely due to infection. Infection leads to swelling of the nerves of the inner ear which affect the body movements.

Treatment of vertigo includes:
1. Rehabilitation of the vestibular system by physical therapy in order to strengthen it.
2. Canalith repositioning by suggesting some body and head movements basically for bppv. These movements help to move the calcium deposits from the inner ear canals to one of the chambers, which are further absorbed by the body. When the canaliths (calcium deposits) move, it might give rise to vertigo.
3. Medicines are given to relieve symptoms of motion sickness and nausea. Antibiotics can be taken in case of infection and swelling.
4. Surgery in some cases.

Dizziness and Ear Problems

BPPV or Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is a major cause of vertigo. This is a condition that gives a sensation of head spin all of a sudden. It also results in dizziness in brief episodes. The severity level can vary from intense to mild. BPPV is triggered with certain changes of the head position. Although BPPV is bothersome, it isn t serious unless there is a chance of a person falling abruptly because of the head spin. There are ample treatment options available to address this problem.

Symptoms of BPPV
BPPV includes some of the following symptoms:
a. Loss of balance
b. Dizziness
c. Feeling of the surrounding spinning
d. Vomiting and nausea
e. Rhythmic movement of the eye

When to seek medical attention?
If dizziness is accompanied with one of the below-mentioned symptoms, it is time to urgently seek medical attention and get vertigo addressed for good:

Hear loss
Tingling or numbness
Fever accompanies with severe headache
Arm or leg weakness
Problems with vision
Difficulty in walking
Becoming unconscious
Causes of BPPV:
If there is on known cause associated with BPPV, the condition is termed as idiopathic BPPV. In most of the cases, though, BPPV is associated with a severe to minor blow to the head. Other causes include an injury to the inner ear, prolonged sitting position in a fixed posture, even migraine pain is at times associated with BPPV.

What are the risk factors?
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is likely to occur in the age group of 50 and above, this being said it can happen at any age in case of any injuries. Statistically, it is found that the likelihood of BPPV is more in women than men. Head injury of any sort is by far the most likely reason of BPPV.

What are the tests and diagnosis involved?
A doctor is likely to perform a physical examination followed by a series of tests. Some typical signs that a doctor looks for include the following:
Ability to control eye movement- especially side to side movement

Symptoms of dizziness
In case it is difficult to spot the symptoms, a doctor might suggest video- nystagmography or electronystagmography. It helps to track irregular eye movement. An MRI can also be prescribed to study the cross-sectional images of the body and the head.

Treatments associated with BPPV:
BPPV mostly go away within months or weeks on its own. If however, it still persists, a doctor can suggest Canalith Repositioning- series of small movements that helps to counter BPPV. For extreme cases, a doctor might advise a surgery for blocking the portion of the inner ear that might be causing the problem. It guarantees close to a 100 percent fix to BPPV.

Vertigo / Dizziness - When To Seek Medical Attention?

Are you feeling lightheaded, unbalanced or woozy lately? Are you having strange sensations in the ears and eyes? These indicate that you are suffering from dizziness, a condition affecting the body s sensory organs. It can cause fainting at times as well. It is not a disease, but a symptom of several disorders. Dizziness is caused by inner ear disturbances, effects of medication, motion sickness and underlying health conditions, such as poor blood circulation, infections or injuries.

Test and diagnosis
If you feel dizzy for a prolonged period of time or if the dizziness occurs and reoccurs, a special treatment is required. This is because dizziness may make you prone to several risks in everyday life. Several tests are carried out to find out the cause of the dizziness. If a stroke is suspected, an MRI scan or CT scan is carried out. A physical examination is undertaken in which the way you walk and balance are observed and the nerves of the central nervous system are checked. Hearing and balance tests may also be required, which are as follows:

Eye movement testing in which the path of the eyes is observed while tracking an object in motion. An eye motion test may be given where cold and warm water is placed in the ear canal.
Head movement tests are carried out when benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is suspected.
Treatment
Treatment of dizziness includes medicines, therapies and balance exercises.

Medicines

Water pills are prescribed when a patient has Meniere s disease, which helps in reducing dizziness.
Antihistamines provide temporary relief from dizziness.
Therapy

Head position maneuvers: A technique known as canalith repositioning helps in resolving dizziness quickly. It can be performed by a doctor, therapist or audiologist. The position of the head is maneuvered in the process.
Balance therapy: Several exercises help in making the body s balance system lesser sensitive to motion. This technique, known as vestibular rehabilitation, is used for people suffering from dizziness due to inner ear conditions.
Psychotherapy: This therapy may be used for patients who experience dizziness because of anxiety disorders.
Use of antibiotics: An antibiotic by the name of gentamicin may be injected in the inner ear for disabling the balance function. The unaffected ear performs that function.
Other procedures: A procedure known as labyrinthectomy may be used for disabling the vestibular labyrinth in the affected ear.
If you experience dizziness continuously, it is important for you to visit an ENT specialist. An ENT specialist deals with problems related to the ear, nose and throat and will be able to provide you with the best diagnosis and treatment for dizziness.

Dizziness - Can it be a Sign of Ear Disturbance?

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