How labyrinthitis and Meniere’s disease differ?
Vertigo conditions or spinning sensations are majorly caused due to inflammation in the vestibular system, auditory system or brainstem. Apart from various other underlying causes of vertigo, Labyrinthitis and Meniere’s disease are two possible causes that lead to repeated episodes of vertigo spells in patients.
Both the inner ear conditions show a similar set of symptoms and risks but are entirely different inner ear disorders that make a person experience a loss of equilibrium and feel dizzy. Nausea and vomiting are often accompanied in both cases. Some of the Meniere’s disease symptoms like difficulty in hearing and disorientation do not go hand in hand with labyrinthitis.
However, labyrinthitis can be cured with the right labyrinthitis treatment or prescribed labyrinthitis medicine. Whereas, if a person has shown Meniere’s disease symptoms, there is no cure. It can only be managed by making some alterations in a daily diet and some physical therapies.
You must be thinking of what is labyrinthitis and what is Meniere’s disease? And how are both the inner ear disorders differ from each other? In this article, we will throw light on both the inner ear disorders to understand the difference between both.
Significance of Meniere’s disease
Meniere’s disease is an inner ear disorder where a person experiences a fluid buildup in the inner ear that affects the other part of the inner ear known as the labyrinth. It can be diagnosed in anyone irrespective of age and gender but is most likely to occur in people after the age of 40 years.
Meniere’s disease not only affects the vestibular system responsible for sending signals from the inner ear to the brain to regulate body balance but causes disturbances in the auditory system as well.
The inner ear pressure that is caused due to excess fluid build-up, clogs tiny hair cells that send signals to the brain for regulating the balance thereby making a person feel dizzy all of a sudden.
When the inner ear pressure is increased, it results in recurring episodes of vertigo spells that appear anytime without any warning signs. Living with such a condition is not an easy task. Simple activities like walking, running, climbing up the stairs, etc seem to be a dreadful task. Some patients may even experience vertigo (Chakkar aana) bouts when they are on wheels in mid of the road. It can prove to be a life-threatening cause as a person loses focus and is unable to see the road in front of him.
Difficulty in maintaining balance, free movement or dizziness, nausea, loss of permanent hearing ability, fluid buildup in the inner ear, ringing sensations known as tinnitus are some of the common Meniere’s disease symptoms. If Meniere’s disease symptoms turn out to be severe and persistent, patients may even experience loss of permanent hearing ability.
Treatment for Meniere’s disease
However, there is no such cure for Meniere’s disease but it can still be managed by certain alterations in daily diet and lifestyle. Some foods and lifestyle practices trigger the Meniere’s disease symptoms even further while making it difficult for people to live with it.
Giving up on alcohol, caffeinated beverages & tobacco products helps in managing the symptoms. Excess intake of caffeine makes a person experience rigging sensation louder than usual as it has stimulant properties that trigger the symptoms of Meniere’s disease. Whereas alcohol and nicotine trigger the symptoms while making a person feel woozy and dizzy.
Going on a low salt or sodium diet and reducing the intake of sugar make the symptoms manageable. Both salt and sugar allow the body to retain water that triggers the symptoms. It is advised to opt for fluids like water, milk and low sugar juices and switch from processed packed foods to fresh fruits and vegetables from preventing your symptoms from getting worse.
Significance of labyrinthitis and its symptoms
The vestibular system comprises two nerves, that are responsible for sending signals to the brain from the inner ear for regulating the balance of the body and cochlea which controls hearing. An Inflammation or disorder to any one of the vestibular nerves is known as labyrinthitis.
An inflamed vestibular nerve results in sending disrupted sensory signals from the inner ear to the brain which makes a person lose consciousness. It’s an indication of the onset of labyrinthitis symptoms.
A person may experience Labyrinthitis at any stage of life irrespective of age and gender.
Some common conditions like cold and flu, bacterial as well as viral infections or inner ear disorders trigger the symptoms of labyrinthitis even further. A middle ear infection that spreads in the inner ear can even lead to labyrinthitis.
A person suffering from labyrinthitis may experience both, loss of permanent hearing ability and loss of equilibrium resulting in recurring vertigo spells. Here is a list of common labyrinthitis symptoms:
- Vertigo spells in which a person experiences a spinning sensation.
- Impaired or blurry vision
- Loss of hearing ability in the affected ear.
- Tinnitus (when a person experiences ringing sensation)
- Loss of equilibrium or unsteadiness
- Nausea or Vomiting
- Difficulty in focusing your eyes
- Severe Headaches
- Sometimes a permanent hearing loss
- A feeling of lightheadedness
Seeking medical help is suggested as soon as you start experiencing any of the labyrinthitis symptoms to prevent the permanent disability of hearing aid.
Treatment for early recovery of labyrinthitis
An expert neurologist will seek your complete medical history and carry some tests like VNG, CCG, and SVV & DVA for labyrinthitis diagnosis. Once you are diagnosed with the same, your doctor will suggest you with the right labyrinthitis treatment or prescribe labyrinthitis medicine as per the severity of the condition.
Some patients are diagnosed with inner ear disorder labyrinthitis due to bacterial infections while others are affected because of virus infections. Both infections show similar symptoms which make it necessary for doctors to diagnose it before suggesting any labyrinthitis exercise or treatment.
Desloratadine (Clarinex), meclizine (Antivert), diazepam (Valium), Corticosteroids, etc. are some of the most common labyrinthitis medicines prescribed by doctors to treat the condition. If the symptoms do not seem to ease with labyrinthitis medicines your doctor may suggest Vestibular rehabilitation therapy for optimum results.
With the right labyrinthitis treatment and medications, labyrinthitis symptoms start escalating within a week or two thereby easing the condition completely within two months.
