

Some are habit forming and may cause withdrawal symptoms if you stop taking them. Older people are at greater risk for side effects of vestibular suppressants. You must be extremely careful with driving and other risky activities because the combination of dizziness with drowsiness can be hazardous. Side effects of vestibular suppressants include increased falls risk and drowsiness. It has few side effects for most people, and seems to work for some people, so your doctor may suggest trying it to see if it works for you. Betahistine is used in Europe and Canada, but not in the United States. Some studies have found that it works to control vertigo attacks, but other studies have found that it does not work any better than a placebo. There are three general classes of drugs that are vestibular suppressants: benzodiazepines, antihistamines (such as betahistine) and anticholinergics.īetahistine (Serc ®) is prescribed to almost every person who complains of dizziness. It is generally agreed that vestibular suppressants should only be used for the first 24 hours. They make your recovery much slower and inhibit progress. Vestibular suppressants stop your brain from compensating for that loss. If you have a vestibular loss your brain needs to adapt to it. They suppress the very thing that we are trying to rehabilitate. However vestibular suppressants are not a long-term therapeutic ally. Getting relief from symptoms and waiting for the spell to pass may be all that is needed.

They are good for acute attacks of dizziness or for a time when symptoms are so bad that you cannot complete functions of daily living. Vestibular suppressants might make you feel better in the short term. They may reduce motion sensitivity as well as nystagmus (involuntary eye movements) brought on by a malfunction in the inner-ear balance mechanism. Vestibular suppressants are used to modify the intensity of symptoms. The medications referred to on this page have been approved for use in Canada. However there is definitely a time and a place for using medication to treat some dizziness disorders and related stress, anxiety, and depression. You might respond to the support of a psychologist or cognitive behaviour therapist. If stress and anxiety or depression are issues, they need to be treated – you may not need to be treated with medicine. No blanket rules apply to medication to treat dizziness – your doctor needs to advise on the suitability of particular medications for your individual situation. Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD).Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV).
