Dizziness

Dizziness is a subjective sensation of disturbed spatial orientation, commonly experienced as lightheadedness, unsteadiness, or spinning. It can arise from disorders of balance, circulation, medication effects, or other causes.

Vertigo: A false sensation that a person or their surroundings are moving, often spinning. Spinning is one distinct form of dizziness, often linked to vestibular disorders.
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo: A vestibular disorder in which displaced inner-ear particles trigger brief vertigo with head-position changes. It is a common mechanical cause of brief spinning dizziness.
Dix–Hallpike test: A bedside maneuver that provokes positional vertigo and characteristic eye movements in suspected posterior-canal BPPV. It helps identify a specific positional cause of spinning dizziness.
Syncope: A brief loss of consciousness caused by transient global reduction in blood flow to the brain. Presyncope may feel like dizziness, while syncope includes actual loss of consciousness.
Presyncope: A feeling of impending fainting without loss of consciousness. Lightheadedness with a sense of fainting is another common form of dizziness.
Orthostatic hypotension: A sustained drop in blood pressure after standing, which can cause lightheadedness or fainting. A blood-pressure fall on standing can create dizziness without an inner-ear problem.
Head impulse test: A bedside examination of the vestibulo-ocular reflex using brief, small head turns. It can reveal impaired vestibular function during evaluation of acute dizziness.
Ataxia: Impaired coordination of voluntary movement, often caused by dysfunction of the cerebellum or its connections. Ataxia is an observable coordination deficit, not simply a subjective sense of unsteadiness.
Disequilibrium: A sensation of imbalance or unsteadiness, especially while standing or walking. Unsteadiness describes dizziness centered on balance rather than spinning or faintness.
Vestibular neuritis: An acute disorder involving inflammation or dysfunction of the vestibular nerve, causing prolonged vertigo. It illustrates how impaired vestibular signaling can produce persistent spinning.

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