Decompression Sickness - Causes, Types and Symptoms. - By: anneyshine

The first time I experienced Vertigo symptoms was right after I had a nasty bout with bronchitis. I had already missed one week of work because of it. On the day I planned on returning to work; I got up when my alarm went off and promptly hit the floor.Vertigo is an abnormal perception of motion and can be extremely disorientating. In it one may feel like the one's environment is spinning, a person may feel off balance and unable to walk straight and in extreme cases, one may not be able to get out of bed or carry on with normal everyday life.It is known as "the bends" and caisson disease, Decompression Sickness (DCS) is an illness that can affect divers and even miners and anyone who is exposed to rapid pressure decreasing within the body. DCS can be defined as a build up of nitrogen bubbles within the body, as we descend down to greater depths the pressure around our bodies increase, with this increase the nitrogen content absorbed in our bodies is too. At this point it is not harmful to us as we can absorb nitrogen until it gets saturated.Vertigo is a distressing condition which can accompany several medical conditions. It can be mildly uncomfortable, or it can be severe and totally disabling. It can accompany the common cold, or it can be due to other underlying problems. By definition, it is the sensation of a spinning movement. When the person affected feels like he is moving, it is called subjective vertigo. When he feels as if the environment around him is moving, it is called objective vertigo.

When it occurs from a faulty brain mechanism, it is called central vertigo. Since one purpose of the mechanism is to keep the eyes focused while the head is moving, there is a complex pathway to the eye movement center called the vestibular-ocular reflex -- this is called Barneys test. Barneys test is performed by laying the person on their back with shoulders on the edge of the examining table and head lying backwards with the patient trying to look over their head. The doctor sits on a stool and tells the patient not to move the skull at all. He places his finger one foot from the nose then tells the patient not to move the skull and tells the patient to look at the tip of the doctor's finger. He then takes his hand far right quickly and stops at the very edge of visual field and looks at the patient's eye, holds the finger for 10 seconds. He then repeats this to the opposite side.

The sensing organs for balance lie within the middle ear and consist of the semicircular canals, the otolith organs of the utricle, and the saccule. The 8TH cranial nerve carries signals of movement to areas of the brain including the cerebellum based on movement of the fluid within these organs. A number of things can affect the balance organs. There can be infection within them, there can be too much fluid, or there can be a tiny stone bouncing around within, giving errant signals. The nerve can become inflamed or a tumor can develop just involving the nerve.Some other causes of central vertigo might be that which precedes a migraine headache. Sometimes vertigo can be psychogenic caused by severe stress effects of anxiety and depression upon the brain. Sometimes it can be a symptom of neurodegenerative disorders like multiple sclerosis, or certain trauma. The Sarin gas attack victims in the Tokyo subway had very specific vertigo episodes after the injuries sustained in that event. The vertigo attacks of the Gulf War Syndrome victims are likewise thought to be due to brain injuries from neurotoxins.

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