First off, what is Vestibular Rehabilitation?

Vestibular Rehabilitation is a specialized form of treatment used specifically for those affected either physically or cognitively by vestibular disease or dysfunction (Meldrum et al., 2020).

Many people wonder if the symptoms they are experiencing are in fact “vestibular” in nature and when they should seek help. It is always better to seek help sooner rather than later, and today we will look at three of the most common key symptoms you can be on the lookout for.

3 Common Vestibular Symptoms:

1. Does the world feel like it’s spinning around you?

One of the most common vestibular related symptoms is vertigo. Many have heard this term used but may not know it’s true definition.

Definition: Vertigo is the perception of the environment spinning around you, or the perception of you spinning around your environment.

This distinction is important when differentiating vertigo from other types of dizziness.

2. Do your symptoms get worse when you sit up, lie down, or roll over?

Do you find your vertigo symptoms are trigged largely by positional changes? Some of the most common triggers reported come from difficulty rolling over and getting in and out of bed.

3. Is lying on one side far more challenging than the other?

Those suffering from one of the most common vestibular conditions (which we will discuss shortly) find lying on one side far more uncomfortable than the other. So, if you have been unable to lay in your favorite sleeping position due to increasing symptoms, vestibular rehabilitation may be right for you.

If you said yes to one or more of the questions above, it is possible you are suffering from a common vestibular condition called BPPV!

What is BPPV???

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is a condition resulting from overexcitement of one or more of the canals located in your inner ear, causing the symptoms discussed above. It is the most common of all vestibular conditions (Dunlap et al., 2019). Studies show that BPPV alone accounts for up to 30% of people seeking treatment (Tonks, 2019).

The good news:

Physiotherapy can help! Physiotherapists trained in vestibular rehabilitation specialise in assessment and treatment techniques that can not only reduce vertigo symptoms but resolve them entirely. Research shows that as little as 3 treatments can have up to a 98.4% success rate with BPPV patients specifically (Tonks, 2019).

Interested in finding out more?

If you can relate to any of the symptoms listed above, or have other vestibular related questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at info@alaia.ca for more information

Get back on your feet and back to doing what you love by booking with a vestibular trained physiotherapist today!

Troy Clare – Vestibular Rehabilitation Certified Physiotherapist

References:

Dunlap, P. M., Holmberg, J. M., & Whitney, S. L. (2019). Vestibular rehabilitation: advances in peripheral and central vestibular disorders. Current opinion in neurology, 32(1), 137-144.

Meldrum, D., Burrows, L., Cakrt, O., Kerkeni, H., Lopez, C., Tjernstrom, F., … & Jahn, K. (2020). Vestibular rehabilitation in Europe: a survey of clinical and research practice. Journal of neurology, 267(1), 24-35.

Tonks, B. (2019). Vestibular rehabilitation: A comprehensive introduction [Course material].