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The Dizzy Patient: Consider a Second Diagnosis
Roeland B van Leeuwen1, Carla Colijn, Erik van Wensen
1Apeldoorn Dizziness Centre, Gelre Hospital Apeldoorn, Apeldoorn, The Netherlands.
Background:
Many patients with dizziness complain about >1 type of dizziness and therefore there may be ≥2 coexisting diagnoses.
Objective:
To determine how often a second or third diagnosis is present in a patient with dizziness and to establish what are the most common combinations of diagnoses.
Study Design:
Prospective, observational study in a tertiary center.
Results:
A consecutive cohort of 621 patients was included in the study. In 187 patients (30.1%) a second diagnosis was present. Within this group a third diagnosis was present in 35 (5.6%) patients. The most common second diagnosis was an anxiety disorder (50.1%).
Conclusions:
Patients with dizziness frequently present themselves with >1 type of dizziness caused by 2 or 3 different diseases. In our study 30% of patients with dizziness have >1 diagnosis. Anxiety disorder is the most common second diagnosis.
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