What is Vertigo?
Vertigo is a feeling that you are moving or rotating when you are not and is a condition of the vestibular system. Most people experiencing vertigo feel as if they have just gotten off a merry-go-round and everything around you is spinning. Others may feel like objects around you are moving when they’re not.
Some conditions associated with vertigo include:
- Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV): the most common diagnosis associated with vertigo and worsened when changing head position suddenly.
- Meniere’s disease: We believe that Meniere’s disease is a syndrome caused by whiplash and that it can take an average of 15 years before the onset of symptoms. Patients may develop vertigo as well as tinnitus and partial or full hearing loss.
- Labyrinthitis: When the inner ear is infected and becomes inflamed, vertigo often ensues. This is most likely due to the ear filling with fluid and not draining correctly. Vertigo should cease when the infection does.
An estimated 69 million Americans suffer from this type of vestibular dysfunction yearly.
A Common Factor in Vertigo Causes
An underlying factor that may relate to the problems above is an upper cervical misalignment. In many cases a misalignment is commonly caused by sports injuries, falls, car accidents or other head and neck traumas. The misalignment can, in turn, affect the proper function of the Eustachian tubes which are responsible for draining fluid from the ears. The vestibular system which normally sends messages of position to the brain may downregulate and the vertebral artery which passes through the cervical vertebra may restrict optimal blood flow to the brain.
Therefore, upper cervical misalignment may result in all of the conditions noted above. If the ears are not draining properly, via the eustachian tubes, inflammation and fullness may occur. A decrease of blood flow to the brain as well as down-regulation of the brainstem may be related to positional vertigo.
How can Dr. Timothy Luke help your vertigo naturally?
Dr. Timothy Luke helps many sufferers of vertigo find relief by focusing on aligning the top two bones in the neck. These two vertebrae are very important because they surround the brain stem (the relay station between the brain and body) and are structurally very close to the vestibular system. CN VII, the main nerve connecting the vestibular system to the brain can be affected by a misalignment of Atlas (C1 vertebrae). When aligned, blood flow to the brain can normalize, brain stem function can improve and the Eustachian tubes can drain better. By correcting this misalignment, Dr. Luke has been able to help many vertigo sufferers find relief naturally.
“When the bones surrounding your brain stem are out of alignment, we can expect dysfunction leading to sickness.”
Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care has been clinically proven to help sufferers of vertigo and Meniere’s disease. (Third Reference to read more)
Call now to schedule a consultation (808) 772-8284
REFERENCES
1. Agrawal Y, Carey JP, Della Santina CC, Schubert MC, Minor LB. Disorders of balance and vestibular function in US adults. Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(10): 938-944.
2. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Strategic Plan (FY 2006-2008). Available at: www.nidcd.nih.gov/StaticResources/about/plans/strategic/strategic06-08.pdf. Accessed May 20, 2010.
3. Burcon MT. Upper cervical specific protocol and results for 139 patients with medically diagnosed meniere’s disease. , J Vertebral Subluxation Res November 14, 2010:1-10.
