Your cervical spine — or, your neck — plays a key role in balance and coordination. So, when this area of your spine is inflamed, arthritic or injured, it can make you feel dizzy, lightheaded and unsteady.
Cervicogenic dizziness is characterized by the presence of imbalance, unsteadiness, disorientation, neck pain, limited cervical range of motion (ROM), and may be accompanied by a headache [2, 3]. The cervical spine may be considered the cause of the dizziness when all other potential causes of dizziness are excluded.
It is known that the cervical spine plays a massive role in balance, and it is thought that cervicogenic dizziness is caused by a disturbance to it or the tissue around it.
Often, tight neck muscles are a symptom of a wider condition that could cause dizziness or headache. These conditions—called cervicogenic dizziness and cervicogenic headache, respectively—are rare, as only up to 2.5% of the population have them.
Vertigo and Chiropractic
To answer your question, yes. Two primary techniques are involved in aiding the body to heal so that the patient can regain his or her sense of balance. The primary tool is chiropractic adjustment. Chiropractic adjustment allows your nervous system to function at its level best.
The most common causes of imbalance without dizziness are related to dysfunction of the muscles, joints and peripheral nerves (proprioceptive system), or the central nervous system (brain). People with bilateral vestibulopathy have balance issues but no dizziness if the damage affects both ears at the same time.
Cervical vertigo is caused by inflammation, trauma, or degenerative changes in the cervical spine or neck musculature. Symptoms may include dizziness and neck pain with head movements. It may be accompanied by tense and tight neck muscles, stiffness of the neck as well as referred pain to the head, neck, or arms.
If you are dizzy right now and have any of the following neurological symptoms along with your dizziness or vertigo, call 911 immediately: New confusion or trouble speaking or understanding speech. New slurred speech or hoarseness of voice. New numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg.
Cervical spine abnormalities can affect the ear vessels and or nerves with different mechanisms. Ear dysfunctions following cervical spine injuries can be manifested as hearing loss, vertigo, or tinnitus. Usually, cervical spine injuries can cause pain and Range of Motion (ROM) limitation.
Sometimes this is referred to as cervical vertigo or cervicogenic dizziness. This dizziness may come and go or occur with motion of the cervical spine (neck), and it can involve unsteadiness, light-headedness, blurry vision, ringing in ears, nausea, headaches, and/or other troubling symptoms.
The test with the strongest diagnostic utility to rule in the diagnosis of cervicogenic dizziness is the cervical neck torsion test (LR+ of 9), which measures nystagmus in response to cervical neck rotation [14].
The dizziness that accompanies anxiety is often described as a sense of lightheadedness or wooziness. There may be a feeling of motion or spinning inside rather than in the environment. Sometimes there is a sense of swaying even though you are standing still.
Dizziness due to chronic worry or stress (hyperstimulation) can last all day or longer. This type of anxiety dizziness can last as long as the body is chronically stressed.
Causes of lightheadedness may be dehydration, medication side effects, sudden blood pressure drops, low blood sugar, and heart disease or stroke. Feeling woozy, lightheaded, or a little faint is a common complaint among older adults.
Causes of balance problems include medications, ear infection, a head injury, or anything else that affects the inner ear or brain. Low blood pressure can lead to dizziness when you stand up too quickly.
Chiropractic care can restore the proper flow of spinal fluid, reducing fluid build up, restoring balance to the inner ear and alleviating dizziness and vertigo. Restore normal nervous system communications.
Vertigo can be treated with medications, but for those seeking natural treatment options, chiropractic may be the solution. Chiropractic manipulations that return the upper cervical spine to proper alignment may reposition the neck back to optimal position, putting a stop to dizziness.
IUCCA Upper Cervical Chiropractic works by correcting injuries to the upper cervical spine (upper neck), the fundamental cause of cervicogenic vertigo syndromes. Misalignments in the upper cervical vertebrae cause irritation to the nerves traveling between the brain and spinal cord resulting in vertigo symptoms.