Balance Blog

Your sense of balance largely comes from your inner ear organs. Many people experience dizziness or feelings of vertigo (a sensation that objects are spinning around you) due to problems within the inner ear. The ear consists of three main components: the outer ear, or external ear, that is visible from the outside, the middle ear, which transmits outer sound to the inner ear, and the inner ear, or labyrinth. The labyrinth is located deep inside the inner ear among the hardest bones found in the skull, and is divided into the cochlear organ and the vestibular organ. The cochlea is responsible for auditory hearing, while the vestibular system is responsible for your sense of balance. This close link between the cochlea and the vestibular system (your hearing and balance organs) is the reason why a doctor may ask you if your hearing is ok if you’ve been experiencing feelings of dizziness or vertigo.

The vestibular (balance) organs report to the brain the position and movements of your head. The three sets of semi-circular canals in each ear sense when you move your head. More specifically, there are two structures called the “otoliths” that notify your brain when your head is moving in a straight line with respect to the pull of gravity. When your right and left balance organs are not working in symmetry, you can experience feelings of dizziness or vertigo because your brain thinks that your head is moving when it is not. This is why many people complain of unsteadiness or dizziness when they move their head too much.

Your vestibular system also works in conjunction with your eyes, in what is known as the vestibular-ocular reflex. As you walk, your head bounces up and down with your body movement. The vestibular-ocular reflex automatically controls your eyes from bouncing up and down within your head as you walk and also keeps your eyes clearly focused. If your suffer from vestibular damage, then your eye muscles don’t receive the proper message from your brain to control your eye movements, causing your eyes to bounce up and down as you walk, creating blurred vision and dizziness. This can make it nearly impossible to read, write, drive, notice objects clearly or respond to obstacles in your path.

When working correctly, your brain uses separate signals from your ocular system and vestibular system to maintain clear vision and balance. When one or both of these systems are askew, you may experience balance problems, dizziness, nausea and fatigue, and a loss of control and independence. A trained physician can administer a variety of advanced balance tests and eye tests to pinpoint exactly what is causing you to feel dizzy or experience vertigo.

Dizziness and balance disorders are extremely common and persistent with the elderly. Why though? Many people can live most of their teen years and adult life never experiencing severe dizziness problems, so why is it that when people get older they begin to experience problems with dizziness and vertigo? A lot of research has been conducted to determine its causes. Polls and clinical studies indicate that the two main sources of dizziness in the elderly result in the ear and the brain.

The most common type of dizziness in the elderly is Otologic dizziness, or dizziness resulting from inner ear problems. Otology is a branch of medicine that studies the function and structure of the ear, including hearing and vestibular sensory systems. Debris that may have collected in the inner ear over a long period of time can cause Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). This is where calcium carbonate debris builds up in the utricle and is not able to journey down the ear canal properly, causing feelings of vertigo. About 50% of dizziness in the elderly is caused by BPPV.

Central dizziness is another main source of dizziness that results from injuries to the brain, brainstem and cerebellum. Neurological disorders can cause disruptions to brainstem pathways, which can cause dizziness and vertigo symptoms. Elderly individuals who have fallen, been involved in a car crash, or who have experienced a stroke may experience feelings of dizziness or vertigo. Injuries to the brain and cerebellum are very serious and can affect the central nervous system.

Dizziness can be incredibly incapacitating for the elderly and can prevent them from participating in activities they once enjoyed. Testing the elderly for dizziness can determine its cause and provide helpful therapy. Advanced Dizziness Tests are available that record eye jerk movements using a pair of eye goggles to reveal neural connection disorders. Trained professionals will evaluate these eye movements and determine which series of treatments would be the most beneficial for their patient.