Symptoms Of Vestibular Disorders
The inner ear is the HQ for the bodysbalance, or vestibular, system. When something goes awry with that system, awhole range of symptoms can result, including:
- Lightheadedness.
- Struggling to walk in a dark room.
- Veering left or right when walking.
- Dizziness or vertigo .
- Stumbling or feeling unstable on your feet.
- Sensitivity or difficulty with vision and hearing.
Inner Ear Causes Of Dizziness
Some of the most common causes of dizziness arise from problems in your inner ear. A disturbance in the blood circulation or fluid pressure in the inner ear can trigger dizziness and tinnitus. For example, a bad cold can swell your inner ears and lead to bouts of dizziness. You might also experience dizziness if there is pressure on the nerves responsible for delivering balance information to your brain.
When Is Dizziness A Serious Health Concern
Temporary or occasional bouts of dizziness are usually a signal to slow down and wait for the fog to clear. If it persists, or becomes more frequent, seek medical help, advises Dr. Chacko.
But for those who have vertigo, it can be hazardous for themselves and others.
Its not the affliction itself, says Dr. Derebery, but the potential impact. She tells her patients to give up scuba diving permanently, and be cautious when driving, climbing ladders, or any activity that could be dangerous should vertigo occur.
The effect of vertigo is not just the spinning which causes you to lose your balance, she says. Its that your body cannot sense gravity so you can fall suddenly.
She adds that vertigo is a symptom of an inner ear issue. If it persists longer than 24 hours there may be something else going on in the brain that must be addressed.
Brain scans and other assessments can look for medical issues that could be the source of persistent dizziness or vertigo.
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Allergic Rhinitis And Dizziness
Dizziness, when associated with allergic rhinitis, is difficult to understand. However, as our allergy advisor Louise Baillie explains, it usually comes about as a result of other symptoms associated with the condition such as inflammation. Here Louise provides more information on the issue and offers some tips about the various treatment options available as well.
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Are Dizziness And Lightheadedness Ever Normal
When we were kids, there was nothing more fun than to be spun around in circles until we dropped from dizziness. If youre experiencing frequent and ongoing problems with dizziness and lightheadedness, however, the problem may be far from fun and games.
At our practice, Dr. Alexa Lessow and our team of otolaryngology specialists understand the many serious conditions that can lead to dizziness and lightheadedness. We review them here.
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Can Seasonal Allergies Cause Dizziness
Seasonal allergies can cause a lot of different symptoms. But can seasonal allergies cause dizziness? If you are struggling with dizziness, then you are probably uncomfortable and also maybe afraid. While some types of dizziness are no big deal, other types are undoubtedly serious. Below, we will explain different dizziness causes and also when to see a doctor.
Other Common Causes Of Dizziness
There are many conditions that cause dizziness. Ear infections are a common, usually harmless cause. However, other conditions can be a major problem. These are things like heart disease, anemia, and low blood pressure. Low blood sugar can also cause dizziness. Lastly, mental health symptoms can cause dizziness. Anxiety and panic attacks are both common culprits.
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Hearing Loss And Dizziness: What Does It Mean
There are many health conditions that can affect the inner ear and cause both dizziness and hearing loss, including severe allergies, bacterial or viral infections of the inner ear, medication side effects and some circulatory conditions. If you experience sudden dizziness and hearing loss, see a doctor right away.
How Do Doctors Diagnose Dizziness
The only way to determine the cause of your dizziness involves undergoing a thorough medical evaluation. This is especially important if you are observing additional symptoms such as vomiting, double vision, shortness of breath, chest pain, fever, back pain, stiff neck, trouble walking or difficulty using your arms or legs. Any of these signs indicate you should seek medical attention immediately.
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Dizziness And Your Sinuses
Feeling dizzy can mean several things, from feeling off-balance or like your head is in a cloud to a spinning feeling. While dizziness can be caused by neurological issues, issues with the ear are frequently the true culprit. Additionally, ear issues can often be caused by nasal or sinus issues, as conditions like eustachian tube dysfunction, middle ear pressure, and inner ear inflammation are normally rooted in the nose and sinuses. Those suffering from chronic sinusitis or allergy symptoms, anatomical issues like a deviated septum, or nasal polyps are also more susceptible to issues with their ears.
Other conditions of the ear that can be attributed to sinus issues include:
- Chronic Otitis Media with Effusion this is middle ear fluid buildup with hearing loss and frequently an off-balance feeling.
- Acute Otitis Media this is an ear infection which can cause ear pain, hearing loss, dizziness, and can lead to inner ear inflammation
- Eustachian Tube Dysfunction this is negative pressure in the middle ear with popping and a full sensation. There is frequently also dizziness or an off-balance sensation.
- Labyrinthitis this is inflammation of the inner ear which can cause severe vertigo , sudden hearing loss syndrome, or both.
How To Treat A Tension Headache
Some people may find relief from tension headaches by applying hot or cold packs to the neck or head or by taking OTC headache medications.
Chronic tension headaches occur when a person experiences a tension headache for 15 or more days per month for at least 3 months. They sometimes happen when a person has underlying muscle issues, sits at a computer all day, or has chronic stress. A doctor may be able to identify strategies for dealing with these issues.
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Medical Care For Houston And Beyond
If you need to see a doctor, then call Emergency Hospital Systems. Our experts will help you get to the bottom of your medical problem. Whether you need a diagnosis or treatment advice, we will offer professional, caring services. Click on the locations tab as shown above to find the hospital closest to you.
Problems In Your Inner Ear
Your inner ear contains sensors that register back-and-forth motion and gravity. If you have an infection in your inner ear, such as a viral infection that leads to vestibular neuritis, these sensors are affected, which can lead to dizziness and vertigo.
Another problem in your inner ear that can cause dizziness or lightheadedness is benign paroxysmal positional vertigo . This condition occurs when crystals inside your ear break off and find their way into the fluid inside your ears that regulates your sense of balance. BPPV isnt serious, but it can pose quality-of-life issues.
Rounding out the more common inner problems that lead to dizziness and lightheadedness is Menieres disease, a condition in which you have too much fluid inside your ears. This problem typically affects people between the ages of 40 and 60.
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Tips For Avoiding Dizziness
There are some things that you can do to avoid becoming dizzy. These tips may help to minimize the chance of you experiencing dizziness, but they do not replace medical treatment. Use these tips as a guide to help you avoid becoming dizzy. They include:
- Avoid reading while in a vehicle
- Avoid rapid head motions
- Avoid quick changes in positions
- Seek treatment for any ear or sinus infections
- Stay hydrated
- Avoid sitting backwards in vehicles
Dizziness can occur at any time and with anybody. There is not always an underlying cause of motion sickness or dizziness. Many Americans suffer from some form of dizziness in their lifetime. Most cases of dizziness are mild and do not necessarily require extensive treatment. Many people with persistent allergies suffer from reoccurring dizziness. Dizziness may be prevented or treated by following certain tips and also seeking medical care. Consult one of our caring ENT specialists today to discuss a solution to your symptoms.
Is There A Link Between Your Allergies And Dizziness
Feeling dizzy can be miserable, you will want to find the root cause and fix it as quickly as possible. There are a number of conditions that can cause you to feel dizzy, and nausea often goes along with the dizziness. You might simply be dehydrated or you may have a medication that is causing the malady. One of the other possible causes can be allergies. You may not think your allergies would affect something like your center of balance, but they can.
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Allergies are the immune system’s way of responding to a foreign substance. Most allergens are not harmful to your body, but they affect different people in different ways. Some people react to certain allergens while others do not. Allergy-related sinus congestion can make you dizzy or even give you a more serious form of dizziness called vertigo.
Allergy Induced Dizziness
If you think your allergies may be causing the dizziness you are experiencing, you will want to remedy the situation as quickly as possible. That means understanding the causes so you can make some adjustments in your life if need be.
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Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction Disorder
Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction is often caused by a variety of factors, including daily habits, your teeth alignment, and even stress. It usually affects one side of the jaw, but in some people it can affect both sides. People with TMJ dysfunction will typically experience pain on one side of the face that is worse with chewing, yawning, or other movements of the jaw. With some simple changes in your daily habits and other at-home treatments, most people with TMJ dysfunction will experience relief of their symptoms within weeks.
Treatment for temporomandibular joint dysfunction usually includes avoiding eating hard foods or foods that require a lot of chewing. Good posture and relaxation techniques may help relieve tension in the muscles that connect to your temporomandibular joint. In people who clench or grind their teeth, a mouth guard worn at night may also help relieve your symptoms. Pain relievers, like ibuprofen , can also help.
Rarity: Common
Top Symptoms: dizziness, pain, restricted movement, and clicking sounds from jaw, history of headaches, jaw pain, pain in the back of the neck
Symptoms that always occur with temporomandibular joint dysfunction disorder: pain, restricted movement, and clicking sounds from jaw
Urgency: Primary care doctor
How Do You Know If Your Vertigo Is Serious
Sinusitis vertigo generally appears when your sinus infection has reached a more advanced and severe stage. If you have a sinus infection and start experiencing vertigo, go see a doctor. You need stronger treatment than whatever you are using to avoid long-term sinusitis complications.
If youve received treatment for your sinus infection and are still struggling with long sessions of vertigo , theres a chance that you may have Menieres disease. Menieres disease causes tinnitus, vertigo, a sensation of pressure in your ear, and hearing loss. As the condition progresses, these symptoms can worsen.
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You’re Stressed And/or Anxious
According to a fact sheet from the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy, dizziness is commonly caused by stress and/or anxiety. Dizziness can also make you anxious, which creates a whole vicious cycle situation that no one wants any part of. A feeling of wooziness or of being in motion is the result of the real changes that happen in the brain as a result of stress.
How To Avoid Allergens
Allergic rhinitis symptoms can ease if you take steps to avoid your trigger however, this can be difficult so, to help you out, here are a few tips.
Animal dander if you have pets then create animal-free zones within your home.
Dust mites use allergy proof bedding and wash your sheets at least once a week as well.
Mould spores address any sources of damp.
Pollen keep track of your local pollen count and avoid going out when counts are high.
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How Does My Vision Cause Me To Feel Dizzy While Driving
Patients with Binocular Vision Dysfunction and vertical heterophoria share similar difficulties while driving: dizziness or anxiety. If ones vision has a misalignment, they will suffer from a lack of focus, added eye strain, and even a sense of double vision. Without having a proper picture of the road and accurate depth perception of their surroundings, theres no wonder why their brain becomes exhausted, leading to dizziness and/or anxiety.
Whether driving on a highway or local streets, Binocular Vision Dysfunction often leads to dizziness, which over time, causes feelings of anxiety.
Symptoms from Binocular Vision Dysfunction may include:
- Dizziness while driving
- Anxiety or panic attacks while driving
- Lightheadedness or close to passing out while driving
- A detached feeling from your body / out of body experience / floating feeling
- Cars seem much too close or coming at you while driving
- Inability to discern distances between cars at the sides and/or in front
- Even when fully stopped, you still feel like youre moving backward
- Feeling like you are moving backward while stopped at a stop light
- Fear of crossing bridges and/or driving along cliffs
- Rounding curves make you feel dizzy and disoriented
- Anxiety over driving on a large highway with multiple lanes
- When your vision places stress on your brain, dizziness and anxiety are sure to follow!
Anatomy Of Allergy And Anaphylaxis
Allergies typically develop for two reasons: first, genetic predisposition and second, environmental factors, especially in early childhood. According to the “hygiene hypothesis,” the immune system in people who aren’t exposed to a wide variety of germs early in life is more likely to incorrectly develop an allergic immune reaction to harmless foreign antigens.
Having an allergy means that your immune system reacts to an allergen as a threat and mounts a defense against it each time it comes in contact with it. Your first contact with the allergen may produce no obvious symptoms, but it stimulates the production of large amounts of an antibody protein called immunoglobulin E, or IgE. In allergy-prone people, IgE is produced in response to generally harmless substances, such as a food or medication. IgE locks onto immune cells to prepare for the next encounter with the allergen a process known as sensitization. Now, whenever you’re subsequently exposed to the allergen, IgE signals the mast cells and basophils to disgorge inflammation-causing chemicals called mediators. The symptoms depend on the mediator and the tissue in which it’s released for example, the mediator histamine can cause blood vessels to dilate and airways in the lungs to narrow.
Certain cardiovascular medications can lower the effectiveness of epinephrine, the key treatment for anaphylaxis so if you’re taking one of those medications and have allergies, consult your clinician.
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Why Do We Get Allergies
Allergies are the bodys response to a foreign substance the immune system perceives as a threat. To defend against the invader, histamine is released into the bloodstream.
What are the most common allergy symptoms?
This causes cold-like symptoms that include runny nose, sneezing, congestion and itchy, watery eyes. And, in some people vertigo.
How To Prevent Falls
To prevent falls, Dr. Honaker has this advice:
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Why Do I Constantly Feel Off Balance
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Infections
Other Causes
Other conditions like low blood pressure, diabetes, and intake of various medications can cause the feeling of being off balance.
