Vestibular Physiotherapy in Edmonton: Managing Dizziness and Balance Disorders

Vestibular disorders are conditions caused by problems with the inner ear and the vestibular system, which is responsible for balance and spatial orientation. If you are affected by vestibular disorders, you may experience dizziness, vertigo, and other balance-related symptoms. These symptoms may make you experience frequent and unexpected spinning sensations, trigger loss of balance or imbalance, and even increase your risk of falling. Therefore, you may experience some difficulty in performing your normal daily activities if you suffer from vestibular disorders. 

Balance issues are common, especially among the aging population. However, people of all ages and genders may suffer vestibular dysfunction due to vestibular migraine, labyrinthitis, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), Ménière's disease, and other vestibular disorders. If left untreated for a long time, vestibular disorders may worsen due to lifestyle choices, environmental conditions, and other underlying conditions. Over time, vestibular dysfunction may drastically reduce your quality of life, hence the need for proper treatment. 

Vestibular physiotherapy is an effective treatment option if you suffer from vestibular dysfunction in Edmonton or the surrounding areas. This specialized form of physiotherapy diagnoses and addresses dizziness, vertigo, balance conditions, and mobility issues that occur due to problems with the vestibular system. Vestibular physiotherapy aims to reduce dizziness and vertigo, enhance gaze stability, improve balance, and enhance your overall quality of life. This article will explain how vestibular physiotherapy at Vira Physiotherapy can help to manage dizziness and balance disorders. 

Common Vestibular Disorders

Vestibular disorders may be caused by various factors ranging from infections of the inner ear to trauma to the head. Some of the most common vestibular disorders that you may experience include: 

• Vestibular Neuritis: The vestibular nerve in the ear is responsible for transmitting sensory information from the inner ear’s vestibular system to the brain to maintain balance, equilibrium, and spatial orientation. However, this important vestibular nerve may suddenly become inflamed and swollen due to viral infections. When this occurs, the way your brain reads and interprets vestibular information becomes interrupted, leading to dizziness, vertigo, nausea, vomiting, and other balance-related symptoms. 

• Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV): This is one of the most common vestibular disorders. It occurs when the tiny calcium crystals (otoconia), a component of the peripheral vestibular system, becomes dislodged, due to changes in head position or movements, and moves into the semicircular canals. Since these fluid-filled, ring-shaped structures in the inner ear (semi-circular canals) are responsible for the detection of rotational head movements, the migration of otoconia can disrupt the transmission of signals to the brain, leading to frequent sensationsn of vertigo. 

• Labyrinthitis: The labyrinth is the innermost part of the ear that houses organs that aid hearing and balance. However, the labyrinth may be affected by viral or bacterial infections causing inflammation and leading to labyrinthitis. This condition causes balance disorders, triggering symptoms such as vertigo, hearing loss, dizziness, loss of balance, nausea, tinnitus, eye movement issues, etc. 

Symptoms of Vestibular Disorders

While there are several factors that may cause vestibular disorders, their symptoms are similar regardless of causal factors. Some of the most common symptoms of vestibular disorders include:

• Dizziness and vertigo (false spinning sensations)
• Imbalance and unsteadiness while walking or standing
• Nausea and vomiting
• Involuntary eye movements
• Hearing loss and tinnitus
• Blurred vision, difficulty focusing, and other visual disturbances
• Motion sensitivity
• Sensitivity to light and noise
• Cognitive difficulties
• Headaches, etc. 

Symptoms of vestibular disorders may interfere with your ability to move around independently and perform your daily activities comfortably. These symptoms may come and go or be constant, worsening under certain conditions. As a result, you may need vestibular therapy in Edmonton to address these symptoms.

What Does Vestibular Therapy Entail?

Vestibular physiotherapy, also known as vestibular rehabilitation, is a specialized form of physiotherapy that aims to diagnose and treat dizziness and balance problems caused by the dysfunction of the vestibular system. This specialized therapy focuses on helping people who suffer from dizziness, vertigo, nausea, blurred vision, involuntary eye movements, and other symptoms of vestibular disorder to retrain the vestibular system and ensure the reduction and elimination of these symptoms over time. Therefore, people who suffer from vestibular disorders, such as Meniere’s disease, labyrinthitis, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), vestibular neuritis, etc, can benefit from vestibular physiotherapy.

Vestibular physiotherapy employs several non-invasive techniques to treat and manage vestibular disorders and their symptoms. Our specialists in Edmonton are highly-trained and skilled in treating and managing vestibular disorders and their symptoms to restore mobility and physical function, ensuring that you can move around and perform your daily activities independently and comfortably.

Vestibular Physiotherapy Techniques

The following are some of the non-invasive techniques you may experience during Edmonton vestibular physiotherapy:

• Balance and gait training: This is one of the most common techniques used during vestibular physiotherapy. Your physiotherapist may design exercises to strengthen your standing, dynamic, and functional balance, ensuring that you can walk and perform your daily activities while recovering from vestibular dysfunction without the fear of falling or having other accidents. 

• Gaze stabilization: Vestibular dysfunction impairs your eye control, causing blurred vision and disorientation whenever you participate in certain activities. However, VOR (Vestibulo-Ocular Reflex) training can help the eyes maintain focus on specific objects even when the head is in motion. 

• Habituation Exercises: Motion sensitivity, chronic dizziness, and other symptoms of vestibular disorders can reduce your overall quality of life over time. However, habituation exercise repeatedly exposes you movements, positions, and environments that trigger your symptoms to train your brain to become desensitized to this provocation.

• Strengthening Exercises: During vestibular physiotherapy, your physiotherapist may recommend strengthening exercises to build muscle strength to support better balance and stability. 

• Canalith Repositioning Maneuvers: This vestibular physiotherapy technique involves a series of specific head movements that helps to guide displaced calcium carbonate crystals out of the semicircular canals in the inner ear to their correct position to treat benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

These and many more are non-invasive techniques that vestibular physiotherapists employ to treat vestibular dysfunction during balance therapy. Before beginning treatment, your physiotherapist will perform a comprehensive assessment to determine your condition and ascertain the severity of your symptoms. Since vestibular physiotherapy does not offer a one-size-fits-all approach, your physiotherapist will curate an effective treatment plan for you based on your assessment results. 

Benefits of Vestibular Physiotherapy

The following are the benefits you stand to gain if you undergo vestibular therapy in Edmonton, AB:

• Vestibular physiotherapy can reduce the intensity and frequency of dizziness, vertigo, and other vestibular disorder symptoms you may experience.
• Vestibular physiotherapy can improve balance and stability, allowing you to move around confidently without constant fear of falling.
• Vestibular physiotherapy can enhance other sensory inputs to compensate for vestibular problems.
• Vestibular physiotherapy can help improve your postural stability and muscle strength.
• Vestibular physiotherapy restores your independence and confidence, ensuring that you can perform your normal daily activities without fear of falling or triggering other symptoms.

Conclusion

Balance and dizziness disorders can limit your ability to move around and perform your daily activities independently and comfortably. However, vestibular physiotherapy can help to diagnose vestibular dysfunction and treat its associated symptoms. If you are suffering from a vestibular disorder, you should consider undergoing vestibular physiotherapy at Vira Physiotherapy.