AtoZ Diseases

Dizziness is almost as common a complaint, especially among older people, as headache. Dizziness is the lay equivalent the medical term, veTtigo. Dizziness is often loosely applied to include giddiness. giddiness refers to a mild form of dizziness frequently seen among elderly people in which there is a momentary sensation of clouding of the mind and reeling or unsteadiness when they suddenly change position, as from a reclining to a sitting or standing position, or “hen they suddenly bend to pick up an object. It is believed to be due to hardening of the brain arteries, in which a sharp mange in posture leads to a momentary flooding of the brain with blood, or the emptying of blood from the brain. Giddiness may prove frightening to some patients, but does not lead to any serious consequences and most patients learn to avoid making sudden postural changes.

Dizziness refers to a slightly more disturbing situation than giddiness that may last a few minutes to a half hour, inuring which there is some unsteadiness in walking and a slight reeling sensation, perhaps nausea, but rarely vomiting. It is usually due to a temporary impoverishment of brain circulation, caused by hardening of the brain arteries, by poor heart heart function, or by a drug that suddenly lowers the blood pressure. The patient will generally seek a sitting position for a few minutes until the unpleasant sensation passes.

Meniere’s disease or syndrome is characterized by attacks that commence suddenly with violent dizziness, ringing in the ear, vomiting, a reeling sensation and unsteadiness of body equilibrium so severe that if the person does not lie down, he would fall to the floor. During the course of a severe attack, the patient is confined to bed and cannot move his head from one side to the other without experiencing disturbing sensations that the floor, bed, and chairs are turning around him. Such a bout may last several weeks before there is complete recovery.

Milder attacks may last a half hour to several hours. The attacks may recur at irregular i

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