Description

Balance problems can make you feel dizzy, like the room is spinning, unsteady, or lightheaded. You may feel as if the room is spinning or you'll fall. These feelings can happen whether you're lying down, sitting or standing.

Many of the systems of the body — including muscles, bones, joints, the eyes, the balance organs of the inner ear, nerves, heart and blood vessels — must work normally to have normal balance. When these systems are not working well, you can experience balance problems.

Many medical conditions can cause balance problems. However, most of the balance problems the result of problems in the balance organs of the inner ear (vestibular system).

Symptoms

The signs and symptoms of balance problems are:

  • The sense of motion or spinning (vertigo)
  • Feeling of faintness or lightheadedness (presyncope)
  • Loss of balance or unsteadiness
  • The fall or the feeling that you can fall
  • You feel a sensation of floating or dizziness
  • Changes in vision, such as blurred vision
  • The confusion

Causes

Balance problems can be caused by several different conditions. The cause of balance problems is usually related to the specific sign or symptom.

The sense of motion or spinning (vertigo)

Vertigo may be associated with many conditions, including:

  • Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). BPPV occurs when calcium crystals in the inner ear that helps control the balance is shifted from its normal position and move to another place in the inner ear. BPPV is the most common cause of vertigo in adults. You may experience a feeling of vertigo when turning in bed or tilt your head back to look up.
  • Vestibular neuritis. This inflammatory disorder, probably caused by a virus, it can affect the nerves in the balance of the portion of your inner ear. The symptoms are often severe and persistent, and include nausea, and difficulty walking. The symptoms can last for several days and gradually improve without treatment. This is a common disorder of the second to BPPV in adults.
  • Persistent postural-perceptual dizziness. This disorder often occurs with other types of vertigo. The symptoms include tremors or shaking, or a sensation of movement in your head. The symptoms often get worse when the watch moving objects, when you read or when you're in a visually complex environment such as a shopping center. This is the third most common disorder in adults.
  • Meniere's disease. In addition to sudden and severe vertigo, Meniere's disease can cause fluctuating hearing loss and tinnitus, ringing, or a feeling of fullness in the ear. The cause of Meniere's disease is not fully known. Meniere's disease is rare and usually develops in people who are between the ages of 20 and 40.
  • Migraine. Dizziness and sensitivity to movement (migraine, vestibular) may occur due to the migraine. Migraine is a common cause of vertigo.
  • Acoustic Neuroma. This noncancerous (benign), slow growth of the tumor develops in a nerve that affects hearing and balance. You may experience dizziness or loss of balance, but the most common symptoms are hearing loss and ringing in your ear. Acoustic Neuroma is a rare condition.
  • The Ramsay Hunt syndrome. Also known as herpes zoster oticus, this condition occurs when the shingle infection affects the facial, auditory and vestibular nerve near one of your ears. You can experience vertigo, ear pain, facial weakness and hearing loss.
  • Head injury. You can experience vertigo due to a concussion or other head injury.
  • The motion sickness. You may experience motion sickness on boats, cars, and airplanes, or in the amusement park rides. The dizziness is common in people with migraine.

Feeling of faintness or lightheadedness

Dizziness can be associated with:

  • Hemodynamic orthostatic hypotension (postural hypotension). Standing or sitting too fast can cause some people to experience a significant decrease in blood pressure, resulting in the feeling light-headed, or fainting.
  • Cardiovascular disease. Abnormal heart rhythms (cardiac arrhythmia), narrowed or blocked blood vessels, thickening of the heart muscle (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy), or a decrease in the volume of the blood can reduce the flow of blood and cause dizziness or a feeling of fainting.

Loss of balance or unsteadiness

Losing balance while walking, or the sensation of imbalance, may be the result of:

  • Vestibular problems. Alterations in the inner ear can cause a feeling of floating or heavy head and instability in the darkness.
  • Damage to the nerves of the legs (peripheral neuropathy). The damage can lead to difficulty walking.
  • The joints, muscles, or vision problems. Weakness in the muscles and joints that are unstable can contribute to loss of balance. Difficulties with the view, it can also lead to instability.
  • Drugs. Loss of balance or lack of balance can be a side effect of medications.
  • Certain neurological conditions. These include cervical spondylosis, and Parkinson's disease.

Dizziness

A sensation of dizziness or a feeling of dizziness can be the result of:

  • Inner ear problems. Alterations of the vestibular system can lead to a sensation of floating or another false sensation of movement.
  • Psychiatric disorders. Depression (major depressive disorder), anxiety, and other psychiatric disorders can cause dizziness.
  • Abnormally rapid breathing (hyperventilation). This condition often accompanies anxiety disorders and may cause dizziness.
  • Drugs. Dizziness can be a side effect of medications.

Diagnosis

Your doctor will start by reviewing your medical history and perform a physical and neurological examination.

To determine if your symptoms are caused by problems in the balance function in your inner ear, your doctor will likely recommend tests. These could include:

  • Hearing tests. Difficulties with hearing are frequently associated with balance problems.
  • The posturography test. Wearing a safety harness, you try to remain standing on a moving platform. A posturography test indicates which parts of your balance system is based on the majority of the.
  • Electronystagmography and videonystagmography. Both tests record the eye movements, which play a role in vestibular function and balance. Electronystagmography uses electrodes to record eye movements. Videonystagmography uses small cameras to record eye movements.
  • Rotary chair test. The movements of the eye are discussed while you sit on a computer controlled by the chair which moves slowly in a circle.
  • The Dix-hallpike maneuver. Your doctor carefully turns her head in different positions while observing the movements of the eye to determine if you have a false sensation of movement or spinning.
  • Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials test. Sensor pads connected to your neck and forehead and under the eyes to measure small changes in muscle contractions in reaction to the sounds.
  • Imaging tests. The magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography can determine if the underlying medical conditions may be the cause of your balance problems.
  • The blood pressure and heart rate tests. Your blood pressure may be turned on when it is sitting, and then, after staying for two or three minutes to determine if you have significant drops in blood pressure. Your heart rate can be checked while standing to help determine if a heart condition is the cause of your symptoms.

Treatment

The treatment depends on the cause of your balance problems. Your treatment may include:

  • Balance retraining exercises (vestibular rehabilitation). Therapists trained in the problems of balance of design a customized program of balance retraining and exercises. The therapy can help to compensate for the imbalance, they are adapted to less balance and maintain physical activity. To prevent falls, the therapist may recommend a balance of aid, such as a cane, and ways to reduce their risk of falls in your home.
  • The positioning of the procedures. If you have BPPV , a therapist can perform a procedure (canalith repositioning) that removes particles from your inner ear and deposited in a different area of your ear. The procedure consists of maneuvering the position of her head.
  • Diet and lifestyle changes. If you have Meniere's disease or migraine, dietary changes are often suggests that they may relieve the symptoms. It may be necessary to limit the intake of salt and avoid other dietary triggers, such as caffeine, alcohol and certain other ingredients. If you experience postural hypotension, you may need to drink more fluids or wear compression stockings.
  • Drugs. If you have severe vertigo that last for hours or days, they can prescribe medication that can control the dizziness and vomiting.
  • Surgery. If you have Meniere's disease or acoustic neuroma, your treatment team may recommend surgery. Stereotactic radiosurgery may be an option for some people with acoustic neuroma. This procedure allows the radiation precisely to the tumor and does not require an incision.
Symptoms and treatment of Balance problems