The condition causes severevertigothat lasts for more than 20 minutes and sometimes for several days.
Labyrinthitis Symptoms
Labyrinthitis can cause a variety of symptoms.
The most common features of labyrinthitis are:
Other concerns commonly reported with labyrinthitis include the following.
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Symptoms that affect your ear generally affect one ear, rather than both.
In general, symptoms come on rapidly, worsening over a few hours or days.
These may interfere with your ability to fight infections in your middle ear.
Diagnostic Tests
Several diagnostic tests can be helpful in assessing symptoms of labyrinthitis.
What Is Vestibular Neuritis?
Inflammation in labyrinthitis often affects the vestibulocochlear nerve (a.k.a.
the eighth cranial nerve), causing vestibular neuritis.
The two conditions often co-occur, so you may receive this diagnosis as well.
They are medically managed in the same way.
Treatment
The symptoms related to labyrinthitis can be bothersome or even debilitating.
Fortunately, the condition is usually self-limited, meaning that it improves on its own.
Symptoms of labyrinthitis may begin to subside one to four weeks after they begin.
Labyrinthitis usually goes away completely in two the three months.
Sometimes, intermittent dizziness persists and hearing loss may be permanent.
Your healthcare provider may recommend bed rest to avoid falls or exacerbation of your symptoms.
Gradually, you could increase your activity level as your symptoms decrease.
Treatments for labyrinthitis are targeted at managing symptoms and reducing the inflammation.
It is administered through a patch that is usually placed behind the ear.
Benzodiazepines, including clonazepam and diazepam, are also potent medications for treating vertigo.
Hospitalization
In severe cases, nausea and vomiting may result in dehydration.
Once your labyrinthitis resolves, nausea and vomiting should resolve as well.
While its cause may be minor, it could also be serious and in need of urgent medical attention.
Fortunately, there are ways to manage your symptoms.
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