Cure your Vertigo For Good
Vertigo, known medically as benign paroxysmal positional vertigo or BPPV, is a disorder that causes sudden dizziness depending on how your head is situated or positioned. Although vertigo is not usually serious, the sudden dizziness associated with vertigo can cause falling, which can be dangerous. Vertigo is usually caused by dislodged otolith organs in your ear that disrupt balance and perception. If your vertigo is getting in the way of your everyday life, make a doctor's appointment to determine the best way to cure it.
Instructions
Handling Vertigo
1. Consult a doctor. Your doctor will determine which vertigo treatment is right for you, if treatment is necessary at all. Treatment will depend on the severity of your vertigo, the duration of time you have had vertigo and whether or not you have been injured or experienced falls as a result of your vertigo.
2. Participate in the canalith repositioning procedure. Your doctor will lead you through the canalith repositioning procedure if he decides it is right for you. During the duration of the procedure, you will be asked to hold your head in specific positions (see Resource 2), and move it slowly according to your doctor's instructions. The object of the canalith repositioning procedure is to get the otolith organs in your ear to move to a place where they will not affect your balance.
3. Follow your doctor's instructions if you have had canalith repositioning procedure. It is very important that you follow the procedure for your at-home care, as your treatment does not end at the doctor's office. You must lay with your head propped up with pillows while sleeping for several days after the procedure. Do not rest your head flat against the bed or below shoulder level.
4. Monitor your progress with your doctor. You may have to participate in the canalith repositioning procedure more than one time with your doctor, or mimic the movements at home that your doctor has taught you (see Resource 2). Your doctor will be able to determine, along with the lessening of your symptoms, whether the procedure has worked within several weeks.
5. Get surgery if the canalith repositioning procedure is unsuccessful. In most surgical cases, canal plugging surgery is used to remedy vertigo, but only in extreme cases where the vertigo is unmanageable and canalith repositioning procedure does not help. In canal plugging surgery, a piece of bone is used to block your inner ear so your otolith organs can no longer be jarred by head movements. According to the Mayo Clinic, the success rate for canal plugging surgery is about 10 percent.
Tags: canalith repositioning, canalith repositioning procedure, repositioning procedure, your doctor, your head, canal plugging, canal plugging surgery