Services

Vestibular Rehabilitation

Have you ever experienced any of the following conditions?

• Dizziness
• Episodes of spinning
• Periods of light-headedness
• Trouble focusing or reading
• Loss of balance
• Increased fatigue
• Spatial disorientation
• Faintness or unsteadiness

If you’ve answered “yes” to any of these questions, you may have a vestibular disorder.

What Do Vestibular Disorders Cause?

Vestibular disorders result in injury or disease to the inner ear. They can result in poor balance, discomfort, light-headedness and fatigue and often result in frustration for the affected individual. Vestibular disorders can be extremely uncomfortable and oftentimes go prolonged amounts of time without treatment. If you feel that you have a vestibular condition, you may be a candidate for vestibular rehabilitation.

What is Vestibular Rehabilitation?

Vestibular therapy/rehabilitation is a specialized physiotherapy treatment program that involves an appropriate exercise-based approach to retrain balance. Our therapists will provide exercises and techniques that can retrain your brain to properly communicate with other body organs and systems. During vestibular therapy, we aim to retrain the brain to properly communicate with the inner ear.

Initial assessment

Your therapist will perform a full evaluation with you to determine:

• The positions or movements that are causing you discomfort, dizziness or light-headedness
• Balance deficits that may interfere with your ability to perform daily activities such as dressing, bathing, walking, driving, exercising or shopping
• Activities or movements that result in extreme discomfort or light headedness
• Visual function as it relates to eye-head coordination required for reading, driving or walking

Following your evaluation, your therapist will discuss treatment options and a therapeutic plan to address your individual symptoms, causes and concerns.

Your Vestibular Rehabilitation therapy program includes:

• Exercises to help you stop or reduce symptoms of dizziness
• Advanced balance and gait retraining
• Compensatory techniques that you can use to decrease symptoms of dizziness and imbalance while performing daily activities
• Specific vestibular exercises to challenge and strengthen the functions of the inner ear
• Supervised therapy sessions to monitor progress and continually challenge the vestibular, visual and balance systems
• Repositioning maneuver for BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo) – which is a condition where crystals become trapped within the inner ear

Who will benefit from vestibular rehabilitation?

The vestibular rehabilitation program offers treatments for a wide variety of conditions that result in balance problems and dizziness. Some of these include:

• Labyrinthitis: Inflammation of the labyrinth
• Benign Paroxysmal Position Vertigo (BPPV): A condition where free floating calcium particles (or crystals) move into semicircular canals, causing Vertigo or spinning with changes in head position
• Vestibular Hydrops or Meniere’s Disease: A fluid imbalance in the inner ear and the symptoms may include ringing in the ear, fluctuating hearing loss, spinning, light-headedness, and loss of balance
• Central Vertigo: A condition which can be caused by damage to the central nervous system from a stroke or head injury, that directly affects the vestibular system. The symptoms of central vertigo may include dizziness or loss of balance.

How can I get Help?

Our services at Emerald Hills Physio & Sports do not require a referral. However, we recommend that you be assessed by your physician prior to commencing vestibular rehabilitation program to determine the nature and cause of your difficulties.

After completing your vestibular rehabilitation program, you should see a dramatic improvement in balance, coordination, comfort and energy.

Contact Us: 780-417-5500

At Emerald Hills Physio & Sports, we can provide a treatment plan that returns you to stability and overall comfort. If you are looking for a vestibular physical therapist near you, call us or fill out our contact form to book a consultation with our therapists today!