Effects of Post-Traumatic Vertigo

Vertigo is a feeling of whirling, twirling, spinning , or falling while the environment around you appears to stay still. It can also encompass a feeling of the environment spinning while you seem to remain still. There are many possible causes for vertigo. Perhaps the most common, however, is a head injury.

Post-traumatic vertigo is vertigo that is a result of a head injury. When there is an injury to the brain, damage to the connection between the balance tubes of the inner ear and the brain stem can cause a lack of communication or confusion in the brain. This confusion causes the patient to experience vertigo. It is estimated that forty to sixty percent of patients who have suffered a head injury are later diagnosed with post-traumatic vertigo.

Many studies have been done to attempt to find a treatment for post-traumatic vertigo that will result in the patient being able to return to work. However, since most of these patients are not a candidate for surgery, and other treatments are not yet readily available or successful in all cases, many patients are not able to return to work. One scientific study involved fifteen individuals. Of these fifteen patients, two were able to return to work without restriction, two were able to return to work with limited duties, and eleven patients were unable to return to work. What does this mean? Most of the people that suffer from post-traumatic vertigo will not be able to return to work as a result of their symptoms.

Another study, however, proved that post-traumatic vertigo can be treated and successfully cured, but only if a full diagnosis is made. In order to properly treat vertigo, the doctor must first determine the underlying medical cause for the vertigo. In the case of a head injury, the various possibilities are many, and tests may be needed to determine the exact cause of the vertigo. However, once the vertigo is properly diagnosed, successful treatment can begin. All of the patients in this study returned to work full time, with no restrictions, within one year of being diagnosed.

Most post-traumatic vertigo can be treated with head movement exorcises. With more serious symptoms such as nausea or vomiting, medication treatment may be prescribed with the exercise to control vertigo symptoms while waiting for treatment to be successful.

If you have had a head injury and you experience dizziness, imbalance, whirling, tilting, or falling sensations, you may be experiencing post-traumatic vertigo. You should contact your doctor immediately to discuss possible testing, diagnosis, and treatment as soon as possible.