What Is Vertigo?

Vertigo is very serious and early symptoms must not be ignored. You may feel that either your head is spinning or the entire world is spinning. Vertigo is characterized by having blurred vision by change in position or while lying down.

The person will appear to be more sensitive towards light and even slightest of sound may disturb them. They may not be able to bear a certain thing and show excessive anxiety.

Stress can easily be seen on face. Person feels very sleepy and finds difficulty in normal speaking. Abnormal movement of eye balls or nystagmus can experienced and the patient may be extremely unaware about this. Frequent headaches, temporary loss of hearing and severe pain in ears can be experienced.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis of vertigo is not just based on these symptoms. There are serials of tests that are needed to be performed to confirm vertigo. The physician may ask you to perform some physical tasks to check how you feel during certain positions.

Auditory brainstem response test will be performed. This test is performed to observe the response of cochlea and nerves in your ears due to a special machine. Blood tests are also done if found necessary by your physician. Tests are done to check strength of the vertebrae. This is called the C-spine x-ray. CT scan is performed to get clear picture of your brain and tell its current condition.

A colorant/dye may be given so that the results are clearly visible to the specialist. If you are allergic to any dye (iodine, etc) tell your technician in advance. Magnetic resonance imaging is done to get pictures of your head. You will be asked to remove anything metallic like watch or any accessory.

Lumbar puncture will be performed to take out fluid from your spinal cord. The blood sample is tested for any doubted bleeding or infection in the brain or the spinal cord.

According to the data obtained as result of these tests the condition is concluded. There are several factors that may lead to vertigo. Also, there are many types of vertigo. Untreated migraine can lead to vertigo. Serious cases of vertigo have shown development of brain stem tumor and acoustic neuromas.