Balance Disorders (Clinic)
Why choose us?
At the Βalance Disorders Clinic, we try to find dysfunctions and treat them in a completely different way than we have done so far. Medication is not as important as an individualised program of exercises and retraining of balance. With special equipment, we are able to evaluate many parameters of posture. Proprioception must be enhanced and patients must gain lost balance automatisms and boost their self-confidence. In this way, we also reduce the risk of falling in old age.
At St. Luke's Hospital there is a Clinic for Balance Disorders which is addressed to all patients suffering from dizziness, vertigo, instability. Its purpose is to examine separately all the subsystems that contribute to maintaining the correct and functional balance and to identify any deficits.
For balance, several individual systems need to function properly:
Symptoms that indicate a balance disorder, such as dizziness and vertigo, are among the most common causes of visiting clinics of various specialties.
The loss of balance can be due to a multitude of reasons, such as:
Our goal is to improve the quality of life of patients who have been suffering for a long time, as well as the immediate therapeutic intervention in acute episodes.
The therapeutic approach ranges from simple counselling and medication to individualised programs for the restoration of labyrinthine function and the enhancement of proprioception. Treatment begins with the diagnosis. Magic solutions do not exist to such a difficult problem, but we can certainly develop strategies for recovery.
Due to the complexity of the imbalance, its successful approach requires:
The tests are numerous and are performed depending on the clinical picture and the history of the patient. Particular emphasis is given to the calculation of the risk of falling in the elderly and the chronically ill. These tests help us find the root cause and recommend the optimal therapeutic intervention.
As for the labyrinth, we examine all five sensory organs (3 semicircular tubes and 2 vesicles). With the head impulse test, we can calculate the damage of each semicircular tube separately. The test is used both in the acute phase and to monitor the rehabilitation of the condition.
By determining the visual vertical we can find out if the patient feels correctly in the environment, so that he can harmonize with gravity. When our whole body is at an inclination, we understand how much more difficult the balance is and therefore more intense and the burden on the muscles and joints.
In patients with concomitant neurological diseases, we check their eye movement, looking for lesions more centrally in the brain and cerebellum that may be related to the symptoms. For the right balance, a stable field of view is needed.
There are many tools at our disposal today. Above we briefly mentioned only a few of them. Depending on each case, we proceed to the required tests, in order to shed light on every small detail that is necessary for the right balance.
Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy (VRT) is a specialised form of therapy to improve the symptoms caused by vestibular disorders. It often includes exercises - head position manipulations and/or a progressive program of exercises designed to reduce vertigo and dizziness, visual problems and improve balance in general, ultimately aiming to reduce the risk of falls. After a disorder of the vestibular system, the central nervous system can compensate for the reduced functioning of the inner ear. Essentially, the brain compensates for the wrong information from the labyrinth that has the disorder by making more use of alternative signals coming from other body systems, in order to maintain the overall balance.
This can be achieved through various exercise strategies, which are applied in the specialised department of dizziness - vertigo and balance disorders at St. Luke's Hospital. When this central (or cerebral) decompensation is achieved, patients' symptoms are alleviated and allow them to return to everyday life more quickly and more safely.
It is addressed to patients who suffer chronically from vertigo due to vestibular neuritis, labynthitis and Meniere's disease. Also, in central vertigo aetiology, there are special protocols which aim to balance the proper functioning of the brain, so as not to disturb the patient's balance by intense visual stimuli and stressful situations.
In the elderly who suffer from underlying neurological or orthopaedic problems, we are able, in the rehabilitation department, with the cooperation of physiotherapists, to reprogram the overall neuromotor behaviour, in order to achieve better balancing behaviour and reduce the risk of falling.
Fill out the form below to contact the Clinic. Your request will be registered immediately. One of the representatives of the Clinic will contact you to serve you.
