Vertigo

Vertigo is one of the most frequent reasons for consultation in daily medical practice. Recent studies show that vertigo involves considerable social costs before being managed efficiently, as it is often incorrectly diagnosed. Sometimes a psychiatric symptom, the original causes are vestibular in Ménière's disease, vestibular neuritis, and benign positional vertigo. Ménière's disease to some extent resembles that of progressive autoimmune deafness. Soon, perhaps, the target of the long-suspected immune reactions will be identified and specific treatments will be developed for the rapidly progressing forms. Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is certainly a favorite of practitioners because the treatment is so simple. Not all vertigos are so easily cured, and surgery must sometimes be performed. In most cases, retrolabyrinthine vestibular neurectomy, with its acceptable risks, is the operation of choice. New diagnostic techniques, such as dynamic posturography, are interesting, but their use is not as yet clear.