dizziness

Many conditions cause dizziness because multiple parts of the body are required for maintaining balance including the inner ear, eyes, muscles, skeleton, and the nervous system.{{cite web |title=Dizziness and Vertigo |year=2009 |publisher=Merck Manual |url=http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec08/ch084/ch084e.html?qt=dizziness&alt=sh |access-date=2010-08-12 |archive-date=2018-07-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705010644/http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec08/ch084/ch084e.html?qt=dizziness&alt=sh |url-status=dead }} Thus dizziness can be caused by a variety of problems and may reflect a focal process (such as one affecting balance or coordination) or a diffuse one (such as a toxic exposure or low perfusion state).{{cite web |title=What Causes Dizziness? Its Symptoms, Control and Risk Factors |date=4 July 2020 |publisher=Healthroid |url=https://www.healthroid.com/symptoms/what-causes-dizziness/14865/|first = Chris |last =Norris | name-list-style = vanc }}

Common causes of dizziness include:

• Inadequate blood supply to the brain due to:
• A sudden fall in blood pressure
• Heart problems or artery blockages{{Cite web|title=10 Surprising Facts About Dizziness and Vertigo|url=https://www.everydayhealth.com/news/10-surprising-facts-about-dizziness-vertigo/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=EverydayHealth.com|language=en}}
• Anaemias, such as vitamin B₁₂ deficiency anemia, iron deficiency anemia
• Loss or distortion of vision or visual cues
• Standing too quickly/prolonged standing
• Disorders of the inner ear
• Dehydration
• Distortion of brain/nervous function by medications such as anticonvulsants and sedatives
• Dysfunction of cervical proprioception{{cite journal | vauthors = Chu EC, Chin WL, Bhaumik A | title = Cervicogenic dizziness | journal = Oxford Medical Case Reports | volume = 2019 | issue = 11 | pages = 476–478 | date = November 2019 | pmid = 31844531 | pmc = 6902624 | doi = 10.1093/omcr/omz115 }}{{cite journal |last1=Chu |first1=ECP |title=Cervicogenic Dizziness Associated With Craniocervical Instability: A Case Report |journal=Journal of Medical Cases |date=2021 |volume=12 |issue=11 |pages=451–454 |doi=10.14740/jmc3792 |pmid=34804305 |pmc=8577610 |url=https://www.journalmc.org/index.php/JMC/article/view/3792}}
• Side effects from other prescription drugs, such as proton-pump inhibitors{{cite web|url=https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm245011.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110305035154/http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm245011.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 5, 2011|title=Drug Safety and Availability – FDA Drug Safety Communication: Low magnesium levels can be associated with long-term use of Proton Pump Inhibitor drugs (PPIs)| author = Center for Drug Evaluation and Research |website=www.fda.gov|access-date=17 April 2018}} or Coumadin (warfarin){{cite web|url= http://www.rxlist.com/coumadin-side-effects-drug-center.htm|title=Common Side Effects of Coumadin (Warfarin Sodium) Drug Center – RxList|website=rxlist.com|access-date=17 April 2018}}

Dizziness may occur from an abnormality involving the brain (in particular the brainstem or cerebellum), inner ear, eyes, heart, vascular system, fluid or blood volume, spinal cord, peripheral nerves, or body electrolytes. Dizziness can accompany certain serious events, such as a concussion or brain bleed, epilepsy and seizures (convulsions), stroke, and cases of meningitis and encephalitis. However, the most common subcategories can be broken down as follows: 40% peripheral vestibular dysfunction, 10% central nervous system lesion, 15% psychiatric disorder, 25% presyncope/disequilibrium, and 10% nonspecific dizziness.{{cite journal | vauthors = Chan Y | title = Differential diagnosis of dizziness | journal = Current Opinion in Otolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery | volume = 17 | issue = 3 | pages = 200–3 | date = June 2009 | pmid = 19365263 | doi = 10.1097/MOO.0b013e32832b2594 | s2cid = 9923013 }} Some vestibular pathologies have symptoms that are comorbid with mental disorders.{{cite journal | vauthors= Lawson BD, Rupert AH, Kelley AM| year= 2013| title= Mental Disorders Comorbid with Vestibular Pathology | journal= Psychiatric Annals| volume = 43| number= 7| page= 324 | doi= 10.3928/00485713-20130703-07| pmid=}}

While traditional medical teaching has focused on determining the cause of dizziness based on the category (such as vertigo vs. presyncope), research published in 2017 suggests that this analysis is of limited clinical utility.{{cite journal | vauthors = Muncie HL, Sirmans SM, James E | title = Dizziness: Approach to Evaluation and Management | journal = American Family Physician | volume = 95 | issue = 3 | pages = 154–162 | date = February 2017 | pmid = 28145669 | url = https://www.aafp.org/afp/2017/0201/p154.html }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Kerber KA, Newman-Toker DE | title = Misdiagnosing Dizzy Patients: Common Pitfalls in Clinical Practice | journal = Neurologic Clinics | volume = 33 | issue = 3 | pages = 565–75, viii | date = August 2015 | pmid = 26231272 | doi = 10.1016/j.ncl.2015.04.009 | pmc = 9023124 }}

Medical conditions that often have dizziness as a symptom include:{{cite journal | vauthors = Tusa RJ | title = Dizziness | journal = The Medical Clinics of North America | volume = 93 | issue = 2 | pages = 263–71, vii | date = March 2009 | pmid = 19272508 | doi = 10.1016/j.mcna.2008.09.005 }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Bronstein AM, Lempert T | title = Management of the patient with chronic dizziness | journal = Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience | volume = 28 | issue = 1 | pages = 83–90 | year = 2010 | pmid = 20086285 | doi = 10.3233/RNN-2010-0530 }}

• Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
• Ménière's disease
• Labyrinthitis
• Otitis media
• Brain tumor
• Acoustic neuroma
• Motion sickness
• Ramsay Hunt syndrome
• Fatal Familial Insomnia
• Migraine
• Multiple sclerosis
• Pregnancy
• Low blood pressure (hypotension)
• Low blood oxygen content (hypoxemia)
• Heart attack{{cite journal | vauthors = O'Connor RE, Brady W, Brooks SC, Diercks D, Egan J, Ghaemmaghami C, Menon V, O'Neil BJ, Travers AH, Yannopoulos D | display-authors = 6 | title = Part 10: acute coronary syndromes: 2010 American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care | journal = Circulation | volume = 122 | issue = 18 Suppl 3 | pages = S787-817 | date = November 2010 | pmid = 20956226 | doi = 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.110.971028 | doi-access = free }}
• Iron deficiency (anemia)
• Vitamin B₁₂ deficiency
• Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
• Hormonal changes (e.g. thyroid disease, menstruation, pregnancy)
• Panic disorder
• Hyperventilation
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Age-diminished visual, balance, and perception of spatial orientation abilities
• Stroke; cause of isolated dizziness in 0.7% of people who present to the emergency department

{{About|the loss of sense of balance||Disequilibrium (disambiguation){{!}}Disequilibrium|section=TRUE}}

In medicine, disequilibrium refers to impaired equilibrioception that can be characterised as a sensation of impending fall or of the need to obtain external assistance for proper locomotion. It is sometimes described as a feeling of improper tilt of the floor, or as a sense of floating. This sensation can originate in the inner ear or other motion sensors, or in the central nervous system. Neurologic disorders tend to cause constant vertigo or disequilibrium and usually have other symptoms of neurologic dysfunction associated with the vertigo. Many medications used to treat seizures, depression, anxiety, and pain affect the vestibular system and the central nervous system which can cause the symptom of disequilibrium.{{cite book | vauthors = Konrad HR | chapter = Chapter 123: Vertigo and Associated Symptoms | chapter-url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK228/ | veditors = Walker HK, Hall WD, Hurst JA |title=Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations. | edition = 3rd | location = Boston | publisher = Butterworths | date = 1990 | pmid = 21250072 | isbn = 0-409-90077-X }}

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Balance disorder
• Broken escalator phenomenon
• Persistent postural-perceptual dizziness
• Coriolis effect (perception)
• Equilibrioception
• Ideomotor phenomenon
• Illusions of self-motion
• Motion sickness
• Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
• Proprioception
• Persistent postural-perceptual dizziness
• Seasickness
• Spatial disorientation
• The spins, a state of dizziness and disorientation due to intoxication
• Vertigo

{{div col end}}

{{reflist}}

{{Wikt|dizziness}}

• [https://www.dizzytimes.com/ Dizzytimes.com] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527005053/http://dizzytimes.com/ |date=2020-05-27 }})—Online community for people with vertigo and dizziness
• [https://www.dynainc.org Dysautonomia Youth Network of America, Inc.]

{{Medical resources

| DiseasesDB = 17771

| ICD10 = {{ICD10|R|42||r|40}}

| ICD9 = {{ICD9|780.4}}

| ICDO =

| OMIM =

| eMedicineSubj = neuro

| eMedicineTopic = 693

| MeshID = D004244

| MedlinePlus = 003093

| SNOMED CT = 404640003

}}

{{Cognition, perception, emotional state and behaviour symptoms and signs}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Neurological disorders