Saturday, February 09, 2008

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo


BPPV is the cool acronym you can use, but it still means dizzy dizzy dizzy.

About three nights ago, I woke up in the middle of the night and the room was spinning around me. Unusual, but not the first time its ever happened to me. A couple of years ago when I had a sinus infection, I was quite dizzy for several days, until I finally got smart, and got some antibiotics.

The odd thing this time around, is that I knew I wasn't congested. I decided to ignore it, and go back to sleep. The next morning, I got out of bed, and the room spun out of control. Before I knew what was happening, I was lying on my back in the middle of the bed, trying to focus on the fire detector on the ceiling. Round and round and round it went for a few seconds, and then everything settled down, and I was back in control.

I got up slowly, and though there was still a little dizziness, it went away quickly. The rest of the day I was fine, and had no further episodes. That is, until I went back to bed that evening. Once again the room spun out of control, and I'm left feeling disoriented and light-headed.

This has continued happening to me now for three days. Of course I'm worried, so I decide to make a fool out of myself, and head to the Urgent care clinic. I explain my condition to the doctor, and he surprises me by immediately recognizing it as a form of vertigo.

To test his theory he applies a technique that is called a Semont maneuver (see link above for details). Essentially, he has me sitting facing the wall, and then lies my head back, and then quickly turns my head to the right. That does it! I'm swimming in vertigo for a good 10 seconds before I land.

The doctor explains that this indicates the problem is in my right inner ear. To prove this, he repeats the procedure, but turns my head to the left. To my surprise, there is no dizziness at all. After allowing me to sit up, and suffer the dizziness again for a few seconds, he explains that I have a mild case of BPPV or Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo.

The cause? One common cause is the formation of small crystals of calcium carbonate in the inner ear (also known as "Ear Rocks" - dude, I have Ear Rocks?), and the motion of these particles mess up the normal sensation of balance. One of the most common things that leads to this is a head injury, but since I've not had any such injury, this is unlikely. It is also possible that a virus is infecting my inner ear, though this is less common.

The cure? Its very likely it could go away on its own. Still, the primary treatment for BPPV, is physical therapy. The article linked above describes the therapy (Semont and Epley maneuvers) and is probably what I'll have to undergo, once I have a chance to see my primary physician.

Of course, that's going to have to wait until I return from my trip to Washington DC to install software for clients. Wait until they find out I have Ear Rocks!! Dude!!

8 comments:

Don Snabulus said...

Ear Rocks? Dude, that...um...doesn't rock. Hopefully it goes away quickly on its own and doesn't affect your flight equilibrium.

Customer installs are always "fun"...especially the training. Nobody is ever ready for the training. Good luck with it and I hope you get time to see something there.

DewKid said...

This is actually my second trip there. I installed in January, and then a number of "problems" were discovered which needed fixing. I wasn't supposed to go this time, but since my Vertigo prevents me from moving my head left and right, I was literally unable to say no. ;-)

Fortunately, I don't have to do any training - there's a separate person that does that. I just got to get it all working, and then I'm out of there.

I didn't see much of the "tourism" sites, but I've seen it all before (back when we used to live in Philly). I did drive some back roads in Virginia, and saw a lot of nice big houses on picturesque snow dotted landscapes, so that was cool.

The Moody Minstrel said...

That definitely comes under the heading of "sucks" even if it is labeled "rocks". I hope you get over it soon.

Software installation? Whatever happened to your lab research work??!? I'M SO CONFUSED!!!!!!

DewKid said...

Um, I've been a software developer at a pharmaceutical company for like 8 years now... Guess I never mentioned it to you?

The Moody Minstrel said...

I knew you worked at a pharmaceutical company, but all this time I thought you worked in lab research! Yes, I guess I must've missed something...

Hey, it's not like I'm there, right?

(bangs head against wall)

DewKid said...

I should probably start a LOTSBOC blog (Life On The Sunny Beaches of California). ;-) Of course, knowing me, I'd post once every couple of months, and everyone would lose interest.

By the way, assuming anyone cares, my Vertigo went away, just as suddenly as it appeared. I guess that means I can skip the physical therapy. That's good cause getting dizzy is most unpleasant.

The Moody Minstrel said...

I'm glad to hear you're on the mend!

Now come visit my blog once in a while!

Pa've said...

My mom has this problem, plus some other ear issues. She has had it for a long time.