Ear Health & Vertigo - A Guide
What is vertigo?
Vertigo is the feeling that you, or your surroundings, are spinning even while remaining still. Rather than being a condition in itself, vertigo is usually a symptom of another problem, and it can range in intensity from very mild to severe.
There are several different types of vertigo, the most common being peripheral vertigo. This is usually caused by problems with your inner ear. Another type of vertigo is known as central vertigo, and is usually indicative of a more serious problem relating to the brain.
What are the symptoms of vertigo?
Both main types of vertigo present the same primary symptom: the feeling that you or your environment are spinning.
Peripheral vertigo can also affect your balance and make you feel unstable. You may also experience nausea or vomiting, and depending on the root cause you may have sore or stuffy ears, difficulty focusing your eyes, hearing loss or tinnitus. Peripheral vertigo tends to come on quickly, and go away just as fast.
Central vertigo can also come on very quickly, but usually lasts longer with more severe symptoms. However, central vertigo is unlikely to present or relate to problems with your ears but can still affect your eyes just like peripheral vertigo. Symptoms unique to central vertigo are headaches, dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), and feeling weak or frail.
What causes vertigo?
The most common cause of peripheral vertigo is known as ‘benign paroxysmal positional vertigo’, or BPPV for short. If your vertigo comes on when you stand up too quickly, or with certain head movements, then you likely suffer from BPPV. This type of vertigo is caused by movements of tiny crystals found in your ear canals.
Peripheral vertigo can also be brought on by inner ear infections such as labyrinthitis or vestibular neuronitis, as well as impacted ear wax. It can also be a symptom of Meniere’s disease.
Central vertigo usually has more severe causes, such as head or brain injuries, tumours or infections, strokes, multiple sclerosis (MS) or migraines.
How can your ears cause vertigo?
Peripheral vertigo is indicative of a problem within the ear that can also affect your balance, eyesight or hearing. Our ears are connected to our sense of balance via canals in the innermost parts of the ear that contain a fluid and very fine hair-like cells. This part of our ears is known as the vestibular system. Naturally, something that affects the vestibular system will affect our sense of balance and can lead to vertigo.
The most common cause, as previously mentioned, is BPPV. This condition relates to the tiny crystals of calcium carbonate (known as otoconia) found in your inner ear canal that can come loose and affect the delicate systems in the inner ear responsible for keeping your balance.
Vertigo can also be caused by inner ear infections or impacted ear wax pressing against the ear drum which can cause discomfort as well as disrupt the signals sent from our ears to our brains that aid balance.
What are ear crystals and how do they relate to vertigo?
Ear crystals are very small crystals of calcium carbonate, known medically as otoconia, that form within the vestibular system of our ears, the system responsible for our sense of balance. Everyone has them, and they help stimulate the hair-like cells in our ears to send messages to our brains to help us keep our balance. Sometimes these crystals can come loose and float in the fluid also found within the vestibular system. When this happens, the free-floating ear crystals can disrupt our sense of balance and cause a type of vertigo known as BPPV.
How can you tell which ear is causing vertigo?
The easiest way to tell which ear is causing vertigo is to lie down and test which side is making you feel dizzy. The best way to try this is to:
Lie flat on your bed with your head slightly overhanging the edge
Turn your head to one side and wait for one minute
If you experience dizziness or feel spinning, then this is the side that is causing your vertigo (i.e. if you turned your head to the right and experienced vertigo, then the right ear is causing it).
If you don’t experience dizziness, then sit up straight and wait for another minute before repeating the above steps for the other side.
How long does vertigo last?
The duration of each episode of vertigo can vary from person to person, and can also depend on the underlying cause. For peripheral vertigo, it can last for less than a minute at a time. More severe cases of vertigo can last for several hours or even days. It’s important to keep a track of how long your vertigo lasts for, how often it recurs, and what might be triggering it as this can help a medical professional treat the problem.
How is vertigo treated?
Since vertigo occurs as a symptom of other conditions, the treatment for it depends on the cause. Central vertigo is usually experienced alongside head or brain injuries, strokes or migraines, and so receiving treatment for these conditions will naturally aid in relieving the vertigo. Similarly, if you experience peripheral vertigo due to impacted ear wax or an inner ear infection then treating these will also alleviate the problem. Some common treatments for symptoms of vertigo that your GP or audiologist may recommend are:
Medication, such as medicines prescribed for nausea or sickness
Antibiotics, for inner ear infections
Vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT), exercises to help ease dizziness, imbalance or eye focus
Ear wax removal, to remove impacted ear wax
Can ear wax removal help with vertigo?
If impacted ear wax is the cause of your vertigo, then ear wax removal can definitely help!
If you’re experiencing vertigo due to ear wax build-up, then contact Ear View today to book an appointment with a professional audiologist to get the best treatment for you.
