Vertigo – Treatment Options

Transcript

There are a variety of treatment options available for patients experiencing imbalance and vertigo. It’s really all dependent on how severe the symptoms are. So for patients who have mild or forms of imbalance and vertigo, they might simply be prescribed some home exercises that they can utilize. That might mean that they’re doing, you know, two or three sessions a day for 20 or 30 minutes until their symptoms improve. For patients who are experiencing more severe symptoms of vertigo, they might actually see a vestibular therapist. So a physical therapist who’s specifically trained in working with patients with vestibular issues. So these sessions are more intense sessions. They’re going to see a therapist once or twice a week for an hour, maybe for several months until their symptoms improve. Sometimes the focus of the sessions is really about improving the patient’s ability to feel stable and for fall prevention. Sometimes if a patient is experiencing positional vertigo, they can simply undergo some repositioning maneuvers where a therapist, or maybe a physician actually maneuvers them around to see if they can reposition these crystals that have been knocked loose, and that improves their symptoms. And for patients who have a true ear related problem to their vertigo, that’s episodic in nature, those patients are likely candidates for surgery and they’ll work with an otologist to determine the right surgical option for themselves.