A recent study reports that of elderly patients complaining of dizziness, only 25 percent were describing rotary vertigo. 5ĭizziness is a vague term that can mean different things to different people. 4 However, another study found that in the general population only 31 percent of patients receiving medication for dizziness found it helpful.
In one study, approximately 90 percent of patients subsequently diagnosed with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) were given Antivert prior to receiving a correct diagnosis. Well over half of these patients – 61 percent to 89 percent – receive some type of medication following their initial visit, Antivert being the most common. While there is general agreement among specialists that vestibular compensation is inhibited by the use of vestibular or central nervous system sedative medications, 1 the literature suggests that these types of medications are used the majority of the time when a patient presents in the primary care setting with the complaint of dizziness, vertigo or imbalance. Brian Collie, D.O., R.Ph.Ĭonsidering how frequently Antivert is prescribed for dizziness, its effectiveness has been measured in remarkably few studies. Research indicates that long-term use may not be the best solutionīy Alan L.