Vertigo Treatment in Carp & Arnprior, ON

What is positional vertigo?

Vertigo is a false sense that your body is moving. Most of us have felt vertigo as children getting off a merry-go-round. Positional vertigo is a condition of the inner ear and is the most common type of vertigo. This type of vertigo is typically brought on by a change in position. This is often accompanied by nausea or vomiting. You may feel unwell for several hours after an attack.

Positional vertigo is caused by a problem in the inner ear, the organ responsible for feeling motion and helping to keep your balance. The inner ear also helps keep your eyes on an object when you are moving your head. Very small position and movement sensors in the inner ear are made with crystals glued to a bed of gel. The crystals are affected by gravity and give your brain information about position and acceleration. For various reasons, some of the crystals can become dislodged from their bed of gel and float around the inner ear. Often they get caught in the circular canals of the inner ear, a place they should not be. When the crystals find themselves in the canals, they stimulate sensors inappropriately, causing vertigo. When the movement stops, vertigo will usually stop 15-30 seconds later.