Do you want the best vertigo treatment plan? Many patients tell me they had absolutely no idea of where to go for help with dizziness and vertigo.
Considerations for the Best Vertigo Treatment Plan
Patients frequently ask if medications or vestibular physical therapy are the best vertigo treatment plan. They want to know what else they can do to get relief.
The answer is that the best vertigo treatment plan depends on many factors.
Cost of Care
Some considerations include what type of care health insurance will cover versus what the patient can afford to pay out of pocket.
Many patients end up paying out of pocket for the best vertigo treatment plan.
Even so, there is no guarantee that the symptoms will not recur at some future point, thereby requiring more care.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis is another consideration that determines the best vertigo treatment plan.
Some root causes of dizziness are best managed with regular use of preventative medication or as-needed medication to alleviate symptoms.
For example, this may include issues with blood pressure or breathing, along with other medical causes of dizziness.
Additional examples include vestibular migraines and Meniere’s disease, which are also commonly managed with preventative and as-needed medications.
Other root causes of dizziness may require short-term use of medications for immediate relief, but vestibular physical therapy may be needed for the resolution of the problem.
After achieving success in vestibular physical therapy and getting relief, many medications for vertigo are no longer needed.
Side note: After completing vestibular rehabilitation, I typically encourage patients to keep any vertigo medications that they used in their carry-on bag for future trips, since traveling is a common trigger for recurrence of dizziness and vertigo.
Patients can help their providers with the diagnostic process by describing their symptoms as I outline in this article.
Team Approach
The best vertigo treatment plan will often require a multidisciplinary team approach, along with a commitment from the patient to do their part of the treatment plan as instructed at home.
Therefore, the best vertigo treatment plan frequently involves more than one health care provider to address all root causes of dizziness or vertigo and follow through by the patient.
Homework
The best vertigo treatment plan may include self-care strategies to address symptoms at home.
Recommendations made by health care providers may include certain dietary changes, depending on the diagnosis.
Often certain lifestyle modifications are included in the best vertigo treatment plan to minimize the likelihood of dizziness recurrence.
For many patients with dizziness and vertigo, a home exercise program prescribed by a skilled vestibular physical therapist is an important part of the best vertigo treatment plan.
Self-care strategies, dietary changes, lifestyle modifications, and home exercises need to be determined on a case by case basis, depending on the root cause of the symptoms.
If you prefer not to commit to a comprehensive, multifaceted treatment plan that will require effort on your part or exercises to be carried out at home, then you may need to rely on medications for the relief of symptoms indefinitely.
For tips on what to do when vertigo exercises don’t help, click here.
For an article that can help you search for a vertigo doctor in your area, click here.
Disclaimer
This blog is provided for informational purposes only. The content and any comments by Dr. Kim Bell, DPT are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. The details of any case mentioned in this post represent a typical patient that Dr. Bell might see and do not describe the circumstances of a specific individual.
