Patients from River Falls, Hudson, and Woodbury often come to us after months or years of unresolved dizziness.

Neck Focused Care

Dr. Steward focuses on assessing and addressing the biomechanics of the neck to improve function.

Dizziness - Vertigo - Lightheadedness - Imbalance

Dizziness is a broad term to describe multiple sensations.

  • Vertigo: The sensation that you, or the world, is rotating. Typically this is the result of an issue with the inner ear canals, the vestibular nerve, or the brain.

  • Tilting: Some people have the sensation that the earth is slanted. This is typically due an issue with the otolithic organs in the inner ear.

  • Lightheadedness: The sensation that you’re floating, “out of body”, or about to pass out. This is typically from a vascular issue.

  • Imbalance: The sensation that you are not stable over your feet. Being off balance can come from many different causes. From simple ankle issues to more complicated cerebellar lesions, this category is more complex.

  • “Rafty”: This sensation can be described as feeling like you’re on a boat. This can be from joint disfunction, or a condition called Mal De Debarquement Syndrome where the body’s “balance map” is dysfunctional.

  • Motion Sickness: This sensation of nausea sometimes paired with poor balance is due to a visual-vestibular mismatch. Essentially, the signals that your vestibular system is sensing and what your eyes are seeing do not coincide. For example, when you’re in an airplane, your vestibular system can sense the motion, but your eyes do not see any motion. This will cause motion sickness in some people.

Some Conditions that cause vertigo, dizziness, lightheadedness, and imbalance:

  • Autoimmunity

  • BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo)

  • Concussions

  • Dysautonomia

  • Mal de Débarquement Syndrome

  • Meniere’s Disease

  • Neck Injuries (Cervicogenic Dizziness)

  • Neurodegeneration and Movement Disorders Such As:

    • Parkinson’s Disease

    • Multiple Sclerosis

  • Ototoxicity

  • Perilymph Fistula

  • Persistant Postural Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD)

  • Superior Canal Dehiscence

  • Vestibular Migraine

  • Vestibular Neuritis

Contact our office today to see if we can assist with your health!

Cervicogenic Dizziness

As you read in the previous section, many conditions can cause dizziness. However, one often-overlooked cause is a problem with the neck joints that leads to dizziness. Dizziness that comes from the neck is called “cervicogenic dizziness.” At The Steward Clinic, we intensively assess the cervical spine and can address the underlying problems if found.

Contact our office today to see if we can assist with your health!

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BBPV)

The most common cause of vertigo is Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). BPPV is also called the “crystal condition.” Calcium crystals within the inner ear are used to help the brain read if the body is moving. These crystals can become displaced and end up in a vestibular canal. When this occurs, vertigo is the result, especially when laying down into bed or rolling over in bed. The vertigo comes in episodes and is short-lived. The vertigo typically improves when the patient keeps still. Diagnosis and treatment are straight forward and have a very high success rate. The Steward Clinic is equipped with video-oculography goggles to aid in the “gold-standard” diagnosis of BPPV. Dr. Steward is trained in finding and correcting this problem.

Contact our office today to see if we can assist with your health!