Vertigo

When most people think of vertigo, they think of being dizzy or spinning. True vertigo or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is caused by issues with the vestibular system in the inner ear when little crystals get dislodged in a way that sends signals to your brain that make you feel like you are spinning. This can be diagnosed using the Dix-Hallpike Test. However, there are other mimickers of vertigo that must also be assed for such as visual vertigo or cervicogenic vertigo.

These often make one feel dizzy but not necessarily feel like they are spinning. A person feels more like they are drunk or unsteady or kind of “out of it.” At the end of the day, the eyes, inner ears and the neck have to be telling the brain the same thing. If there is an injury or issue with any one of the three balance will be altered. To properly diagnosis visual or cervicogenic vertigo certain tests that asses the vestibular ocular reflex and the cervical ocular will be performed.