What's on this Page
What are the common causes of vertigo?
The causes of vertigo are central (due to a brain stem lesion) or peripheral (due to an inner ear or vestibular nerve lesion).
Central vertigo is almost always accompanied by other signs of brain stem dysfunction, such as double vision, weakness or numbness of the face, dysarthria, or dysphagia.
Peripheral vertigo is usually accompanied by tinnitus or hearing loss but no other neurologic abnormalities.
Common Causes of Vertigo
Central | Peripheral |
---|---|
Brain stem stroke or transient ischemic attack | Vestibular neuronitis |
Multiple sclerosis | Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo |
Neoplasms | Ménière’s disease |
Syringobulbia | Local trauma or posttraumatic |
Arnold–Chiari deformity | Physiologic (e.g., motion sickness) |
Antineoplastics | Drugs/toxins (e.g., antibiotics, diuretics, or anticonvulsants) |
Basilar migraine | Posterior fossa tumors/masses (e.g., acoustic neuroma) |
Cerebellar hemorrhage | — |
Sources
Karp BI, Laurend R: Pontine and extrapontine myelinolysis: A neurologic disorder following rapid correction of hyponatremia. Medicine 72:369-371, 1993.