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vertigo

 
Dictionary: ver·ti·go   (vûr'tĭ-gō') pronunciation
n., pl., -goes, or -gos.
    1. The sensation of dizziness.
    2. An instance of such a sensation.
  1. A confused, disoriented state of mind.

[Middle English, from Latin vertīgō, from vertere, to turn.]


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Feeling that one is spinning or that one's surroundings are spinning around one, causing confusion and difficulty keeping one's balance, sometimes accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Vertigo is normal after actual spinning, since inner-ear fluid continues to move once the body has stopped, producing a mismatch between visual and internal sensations. Lack of a stable visual reference point also contributes to this effect. Other causes include concussion and abnormalities of the inner ear (e.g., labyrinthitis; see otitis), of the nerves that carry signals from it, or of the brain centers that receive them (e.g., stroke). Vertigo is often confused with a feeling of faintness (see syncope), since both are called dizziness. See also motion sickness, proprioception, spatial disorientation.

For more information on vertigo, visit Britannica.com.

Dental Dictionary: vertigo
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(vur′təgō)
n

1. a sensation described as dizziness. n 2. a sensation of the room revolving about the patient or the patient revolving in space. It is a form of dizziness, but the terms are not synonymous.


dizziness

A feeling of unsteadiness. There are two main types of vertigo. In the first type the sufferer feels that his or her body or the environment is spinning. It is commonly caused by motion sickness or a viral infection of the organs of balance (see vestibular apparatus). The second type of vertigo is characterized by weakness, and is commonly caused by low blood sugar or low blood pressure. As long as low blood pressure is not the result of shock or blood loss, a sufferer of the second type of vertigo may benefit from physical activity. Anyone prone to vertigo should take great care when taking part in sports where a fall may be dangerous.

 
vertigo (vûr'tĭgō), sensations of moving in space or of objects moving about a person and the resultant difficulty in maintaining equilibrium. True vertigo, as distinguished from faintness, lightheadedness, and other forms of dizziness, occurs as a result of a disturbance of some part of the body's balancing mechanism, located in the inner ear (e.g., vestibule, semicircular canals, auditory nerves). Labyrinthitis, or infection and irritation of the middle and inner ear, is a common cause of vertigo. Elimination of infectious, toxic, or environmental factors underlying the disturbance is essential for permanent relief.


Word Tutor: vertigo
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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Dizziness.

pronunciation When I had the flu, I suffered from vertigo every time I tried to get out of bed.

Translations: Vertigo
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - svimmelhed

Nederlands (Dutch)
duizeligheid

Français (French)
n. - vertige

Deutsch (German)
n. - Schwindel, Vertigo

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (φυσιολ.) ίλιγγος, σκοτοδίνη, ζάλη

Italiano (Italian)
vertigine

Português (Portuguese)
n. - vertigem (f) (Med.)

Русский (Russian)
головокружение

Español (Spanish)
n. - vértigo

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - svindel, yrsel

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
眩晕, 晕头转向

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 眩暈, 暈頭轉向

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 현기[증], 혼란, 선회병

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - めまい, 混乱

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) دوار, دوخه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮סחרחורת‬


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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
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