| Meniere's disease | | Meniere's disease comprises of the triad of symptoms, namely vertigo, deafness and tinnitus. It is typified by increased endolymph tension. The disease gets its name from the French physician, Meniere, who first described it. The complaints of this disease don't follow a fixed pattern and appear at random intervals. It generally affects people over the age of 30 years. Both the sexes are equally affected by this illness, but it is marginally more in males than in females. | | Symptoms | | Giddiness
Patient may complain of sudden attacks of giddiness of changeable intensity, duration and intervals. He may suffer from mild dizzy spells or imbalance to severe vertigo of a rotatory type. Deafness
There is some level of sensory-neural deafness always present but may vary in degree. It often tends to increase with each attack. The patient may at times hear distorted sounds and may frequently become oversensitive to loud noise too. Tinnitus
A ringing or booming sensation in one or both ears could be experienced, either continuously or only during the attack The following complaints may accompany when the spell is very severe
- Nausea and vomiting
- Indisposition, diarrhea and sweating
- Headache
- Anxiety
- Nystagmus (involuntary movements of the eyeballs)
- Sensation of fullness in the ears | | Do's and Don'ts | | Avoid smoking and alcohol consumption
A low salt diet is advisable
Avoid making very brisk movements; rise from the seat gently, lie down slowly etc
Reassuring the patient and allaying his anxiety are very important | Case of Meniere's disease |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 11 July 2006 )
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