PANCE Blueprint EENT (7%)

Patient will present as → a 27-year-old male with intense nausea and vomiting that began yesterday. He states that he ran a 15-kilometer race in the morning and felt well while resting in a hammock afterward. However, when he rose from the hammock, he experienced two episodes of emesis accompanied by a sensation that the world was spinning around him. This lasted about one minute and self-resolved. He denies tinnitus or hearing changes, but he notes that he still feels slightly imbalanced. He has a past medical history of migraines, but he typically does not have nausea or vomiting with the headaches. At this visit, the patient’s temperature is 98.5°F (36.9°C), blood pressure is 126/81 mmHg, pulse is 75/min, and respirations are 13/min. Cardiopulmonary exam is unremarkable. Cranial nerves are intact, and gross motor function and sensation are within normal limits. When the patient’s head is turned to the right side and he is lowered quickly to the supine position, he claims that he feels “dizzy and nauseous.” Nystagmus is noted in both eyes

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Vertigo is the sensation of movement (spinning, tumbling, or falling) in the absence of any actual movement or an over-response to movement.

• Peripheral (inner ear) causes of vestibular dysfunction include labyrinthitis, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, endolymphatic hydrops (Ménière syndrome), vestibular neuritis, and head injury.
• Central (neurologic) causes of vertigo include brainstem vascular disease, arteriovenous malformations, tumors, multiple sclerosis, and vertebrobasilar migraine.

Duration and presence of hearing loss/nystagmus can help with diagnosis.

• Peripheral vertigo is associated with sudden onset, nausea/vomiting, tinnitus, hearing loss, and nystagmus (typically horizontal with a rotatory component)
• Central vertigo is associated with a more gradual onset and vertical nystagmus. Unlike peripheral vertigo, it does not present with auditory symptoms. Central vertigo is commonly associated with motor, sensory, or cerebellar deficits.

Vertigo and syncope = vertebrobasilar insufficiency

Overview

With benign positional vertigo, the Dix–Hallpike maneuver (i.e., quickly turning the patient’s head 90 degrees while the patient is in the supine position) will produce a delayed fatigable nystagmus.

• If the nystagmus is non fatigable, a central cause for the vertigo is more likely
• Other testing, such as audiometry, caloric stimulation, electronystagmography (ENG), MRI, and evoked potentials, are indicated with persistent vertigo or with suspected central nervous system (CNS) involvement
• Romberg Sign = central vertigo

Therapy is based on the underlying etiology

• Vestibular suppressants (i.e., diazepam, meclizine) may help with acute symptoms
• Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo may respond to physical therapy maneuvers (Epley Maneuver)
• Some cases may require interventional/surgical therapies