Causes and Symptoms of Vertigo and Dizziness
One of the most frequent causes of consultation is the dizziness. Vertigo is the sensation of things spinning around each other (objective vertigo) or a tour around things (subjective vertigo).
Dizziness is a feeling of instability, as one walks on cotton, in high and low. These can occur separately or together, and the vast majority of cases are of benign origin, ie, not a brain problem, but on one condition at the ear or vestibular nerve, which is carrying the information from ear to the brain.
The most common causes of vertigo or dizziness of non-cerebral origin (peripheral vestibular syndrome or SVP) are of viral origin (vestibular neuronitis, a viral inflammation of the nerve), at the microscopic mechanical disorders of the ear (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo), by increasing pressure of the endolymph which is a liquid in the internal system of the ear (Meniere’s disease), trauma (vertigo post TEC), infectious (syphilis) and others.
The SVP is often accompanied by severe nausea, vomiting, sweating, cold and long malaise. Depending on the cause, can last a couple of days, or chronic. It is with rest, light food and drugs that decrease the dizziness / vertigo (antivertiginosos) and drugs that reduce nausea (antiemetic) and the prognosis is generally good.
Then there is the vertigo of cerebral origin (central vestibular syndrome or SVC) which corresponds to less than 20% of all attacks of vertigo or dizziness.
May be secondary to brain tumors (particularly in the cerebellum or brain stem structures that are in the lower part of the brain), stroke or brain hemorrhage, multiple sclerosis, some types of epilepsy and others. Obviously having a problem to the brain, the prognosis is not as good as the SVP.
Depending on the cause you choose the most appropriate treatment for each patient (tumor surgery, antithrombotic agents in stroke, multiple sclerosis, interferon, etc..) Plus the same drugs used and Antiemetics antivertiginosos in the SVP. The SVC is usually more difficult to manage and takes longer to recover, in some cases may be chronic, ie with permanent vertigo.
Posted in 
Tags: