Dizziness: Symptom

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Definition

By Mayo Clinic staff

Dizziness can range from a fleeting, momentary sensation to a severe loss of balance disorder that makes normal functioning impossible. Nearly half of all adults will have an episode of dizziness serious enough to send them to the doctor.

Dizziness generally refers to three specific sensations:

  • Faintness. One type of dizziness is described as feeling lightheaded, as if you might pass out.
  • Loss of balance. Another type of dizziness is characterized by feeling unsteady on your feet, as if you might fall.
  • Vertigo. With vertigo, you feel as if the world is spinning around you or that you yourself are spinning.

Describing your dizziness as precisely as possible will make it easier for your doctor to diagnose the cause and treat it.

Causes
References
  1. Tusa RJ. Dizziness. Medical Clinics of North America. 2009;93:263.
  2. Dizziness and motion sickness. American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery. http://www.entnet.org/HealthInformation/dizzinessMotionSickness.cfm. Accessed Aug. 10, 2012.
  3. Flint PW, et al. Cummings Otolaryngology: Head & Neck Surgery. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?about=true&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05283-2..X0001-8--TOP&isbn=978-0-323-05283-2&uniqId=230100505-57. Accessed Aug. 10, 2012.
  4. Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2013: 5 Books in 1. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2012. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-08373-7..00002-9&isbn=978-0-323-08373-7&about=true&uniqId=343863096-23. Accessed Aug. 23, 2012.
  5. Kerber KA. Vertigo and dizziness in the emergency department. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America. 2009;27:39.
  6. Wilkinson JM (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. September 4, 2012.
MY00118 Sept. 11, 2012

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