A specialized approach to diagnosing and treating vertigo

Abstract

Vertigo is one of the most common reasons for visits to physicians of different specialties. Thorough collection of history data and neurovestibular examination by a set of simple clinical tests are of great importance for the diagnosis of diseases of the vestibular system. The paper gives an update on the principles of diagnosis of different forms of vertigo, diagnostic errors, and treatment of major diseases manifesting by vertigo. The authors present their own data concerning the diagnosis and treatment of the most common vestibular disorders, such as benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, Meniere's disease, vestibular neuronitis, and postural phobic instability. They also describe a clinical case of a female patient with vestibular neuronitis, in whom a specialized examination (neurovestibular examination, videonystagmography, and caloric testing) could identify right labyrinthine hypofunction that could not be detected prior to the examination in the clinic.