Dizziness

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Specific forms of feeling dizzy, eg, feeling vertigo, feeling like your heart is racing, feeling off balance can be key to identifying the cause. Specific triggers, such as certain activities or positions, may be indicative of the cause of dizziness The duration of the dizziness episodes and any additional symptoms also help the doctor to make an accurate diagnosis. These connections sense changes in head position and movement Standing up or turning in circles can make the condition worse Sometimes vertigo is so severe that it causes nausea, vomiting and balance problems However, the positive side of vertigo is that it does not last long After a few weeks, as a rule, the body adapts to the cause of dizziness
Causes of vertigo:

• Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo CPV causes intense, brief episodes of vertigo that follow a sudden change in head position, such as when turning over in bed or getting out of bed. CPPV is the most common cause of vertigo
• Inflammation of the inner ear Symptoms of inflammation of the inner ear (acute vestibular neuritis) may manifest as a sudden onset of intense, persistent vertigo that lasts for several days and is accompanied by: nausea, vomiting and balance problems These symptoms may be so severe that the patient has to stay in bed When the condition is accompanied by sudden hearing loss, the disease is called labyrinthitis Fortunately, vestibular neuritis often resolves on its own However, early treatment may speed recovery
• Meniere's disease During the disease, excess fluid accumulates in the inner ear Standing is characterized by sudden episodes of vertigo lasting several hours, accompanied by intermittent hearing loss, a ringing sensation in the ears, and a feeling of fullness on the side of the affected ear.
• Vestibular migraine A migraine is a much more serious problem than a headache Some patients may experience only a visual "aura", although some patients experience vertigo and other forms of dizziness, even when standing is not accompanied by a severe headache. Such episodes may last from hours to days and are associated with headaches and hypersensitivity to light or noise.
• Auricular nerve neuroma An auditory nerve neuroma (vestibular schwannoma) is a benign growth on the nerve that connects the inner ear to the brain. Symptoms of a trigeminal neuroma are mainly progressive hearing loss or a ringing sensation in one ear, accompanied by loss of balance or dizziness.
• Other reasons Rarely, vertigo can be a sign of a serious neurological problem, such as a stroke, bleeding in the brain, or multiple sclerosis. In these cases, there are other neurological symptoms, such as double vision, slurred speech, facial weakness or numbness, impaired coordination of limbs, or balance problems.

Feeling of heart failure

During dizziness, the patient may have a feeling of heart failure without loss of consciousness. Sometimes, a feeling of nausea, pale or clammy skin accompanies the feeling of nausea Causes of this form of dizziness:

• drop in blood pressure (orthostatic hypotension) A sharp drop in systolic blood pressure may cause a feeling of heart failure This condition is often triggered by sitting up or standing up quickly
• Insufficient blood flow from the heart There may be many reasons for insufficient blood flow from the heart: diseases of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathies), abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia) or a decrease in blood volume

Loss of balance

During loss of balance, the patient feels unstable when walking. Causes:

• inner ear (vestibular) problems Inner ear problems can cause a feeling of unsteadiness when walking, especially in the dark
• Sensitivity problems Damage to the nerves of the optic nerve or limbs (peripheral neuropathy) is common in the elderly This condition also disrupts the function of maintaining balance
• Muscle and joint problems Loss of balance can be caused by muscle weakness and osteoarthritis - a form of arthritis in which the joint wears down and the main weight-bearing joints are damaged.
• Neurological problems Neurological diseases can cause: progressive loss of balance, such as Parkinson's disease and ataxia
• Medications Loss of balance can be caused by side effects of some medications Such drugs include: anti-seizure drugs, tranquilizers, and tranquilizers.
• Other dizziness-like sensations, such as: feeling light-headed, floating, or light-headed

Other dizziness-like sensations are difficult to describe The doctor may define such sensations as non-specific dizziness Causes:

• Medications Medicines that lower blood pressure can cause heart failure Some medications cause non-specific feelings of dizziness that resolve after the medication is stopped.
• Diseases of the inner ear Inner ear problems can cause persistent, non-vertigo-like dizziness
• Anxiety disorders Any anxiety disorder, such as panic attacks or the fear of leaving the house (agoraphobia), can cause dizziness. Sometimes a single cause, such as an inner ear problem, causes the symptoms, but accompanying anxiety causes the feeling of vertigo to persist even after the inner ear problem is resolved.
• Low iron content in the blood (anemia) Anemia can be accompanied by other symptoms besides dizziness: fatigue, weakness and pale skin.
• Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) This stiffness is mainly found in diabetic patients who use insulin Dizziness may be accompanied by sweating and confusion
• Ear infections Sometimes, ear infections cause dizziness Dizziness will pass along with the recovery of the infection
• Overheating and dehydration If you exercise in hot weather or don't drink enough fluids, you may feel dizzy from overheating (hyperthermia) or dehydration. Especially when you are taking certain heart medications Staying in cool places and drinking fluids can reduce the feeling of dizziness
• Chronic dizziness (subjective) This clinical syndrome is characterized by non-specific dizziness for which there is no obvious medical cause Chronic vertigo is associated with hypersensitivity to one's own movements This form of vertigo worsens when in a complex visual environment (eg in the supermarket), having moving objects in the field of vision (when watching a movie) or any task that requires visual observation

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Dizziness can be specifically described as one of the following sensations:

• Unreal feeling of movement or spinning (vertigo)
• Feeling like your heart is racing
• Loss of balance
• Other sensations such as spinning, floating or lightheadedness

Many diseases cause dizziness and similar sensations In some of these diseases or conditions, parts of the sensory system leading to the brain are damaged or the wrong signals are sent to the brain. Such sensory systems are:

• eyes, which determine the location of the body in space and its movement
• Sensory nerves that send signals to the brain about body movements and positions
• Inner ear It contains sensors that sense gravity and control back and forth movements

When to see a doctor

If you have sudden, unexplained dizziness, see a doctor

Dial 112 and seek medical attention if you experience new-onset, severe dizziness or vertigo and it is accompanied by or caused by:

• Severe traumatic head injury
• New-onset, different type or severe headache
• Stingy neck