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Dizziness often occurs with other symptoms. If you experience any of the following symptoms alongside your dizziness, it is worth getting a balance evaluation:

• Feeling confused or inability to coordinate movements 
• Leaning or veering to one side when walking 
• Increased sensitivity to light and sound 
• Sensations of being pushed or pulled 
• Unsteadiness or disequilibrium 
• Spinning sensations or vertigo 
• Repeated light-headedness 
• Blurred or double vision 
• Anxiety or panic attacks 
• Headaches or migraines
• Fluctuating hearing loss 
• Nausea or vomiting
• Floating sensations 
• Motion sickness 
• Fullness in ears 
• Neck pain 
• Brain fog 
• Tinnitus 

Although balance impairment may arise from a whole host of different health disorders and bodily systems, deficits in the inner ear balance system, otherwise known as the vestibular system, are often found to be involved.

The following diseases and disorders linked to the vestibular system commonly lead to balance impairment:

• Benign Positional Paroxysmal Vertigo (BPPV) 

The most common cause of vertigo. It is caused by misplaced calcium crystals in the vestibular system and results in short bursts of dizziness provoked specifically by head movements. 

• Vestibular Neuronitis 

Caused by viral inflammation of the vestibular nerve leading to dizziness and imbalance.

• Labyrinthitis 

Viral or bacterial inflammation of the inner ear nerves leading to dizziness and hearing loss.

• Vestibulopathy 

Damage to vestibular organs that leads to imbalance and anxiety.

• Trauma 

Head injuries may cause damage to the structures in the vestibular system leading to dizziness and imbalance.

• Ototoxic Medication 

Can cause permanent damage to the vestibular system, typically resulting in imbalance, hearing loss and tinnitus. These include some types of chemotherapy drugs.

• Meniere’s Disease 

A progressive condition caused by inner ear fluid imbalance leading to attacks of dizziness, tinnitus, pressure in ears and increasing hearing loss. 

• Superior Canal Dehiscence Syndrome 

An anatomical change/ thinning in the bone overlying the vestibular end organ that leads to aural fullness, tinnitus, and sound/ pressure induced dizziness.

• Vestibular Migraine 

Caused by temporary changes in brain activity that leads to motion intolerance, dizziness and visual disturbance.

Microsuction is a technique for removing ear wax or debris using either an ENT (Ear Nose and Throat) binocular operating microscope or specialised magnification loupes (similar to the type dentists use).

This allows the clinician to look in the ear canal in great detail and use a very fine sterile suction device at low pressure to remove the wax. This process is not dissimilar to using a tiny vacuum cleaner inside the ear to remove the wax. Occasionally we may need to use other instruments to remove hard wax (such as Jobson Horne probes or micro forceps).

Using microsuction means that we can visualise the external ear canal and its contents in great detail while having minimal physical contact with the earlobe. This makes the process more comfortable for patients.

Preparation of wax with olive oil ear drops is not usually necessary but may make the procedure faster and more comfortable for the patient. For more information on this (and other topics such as the cost of ear wax removal) visit our FAQ section.

There are a variety of reasons why microsuction is superior compared to the traditional forms of wax removal (e.g., ear syringing or irrigation, ear drops). Ear microsuction is:

• safer
• faster
• better tolerated
• more effective
• usually does not require weeks of waiting for drops to soften the wax. It may be performed on the same day you decide to book your appointment

If you come across any of the following signs, it’s worth getting a full hearing examination:

• Difficulty understanding conversation in a crowd and other situations with background noise 
• Avoidance of previously enjoyable social situations due to mishearing 
• Difficulty with hearing over the telephone and the ringing of doorbells 
• Men's voices being easier to understand than women's or children's
• Becoming isolated, depressed or irritable due to hearing difficulties 
• Denial of hearing loss and unwillingness to be medically tested
• Dominating discussions and talking louder than usual
• Frequent requests for repetition during conversation 
• Complaints of noises (tinnitus) in one or both ears 
• Frequent inappropriate conversational responses 
• Listening to TV or Radio at a very high volume 
• Trouble hearing a speaker from a distance 
• Complaints about others "mumbling" 
• Straining one ear over the other 
• Inability to localise sounds 

There are two main types of hearing loss, one is known as sensori-neural hearing loss (damage is within the inner ear and, or the auditory nerve) and the other is known as conductive hearing loss (damage is within the middle ear–the ear drum or the bones behind the ear drum):

• Age related (Presbycusis) – Gradual deterioration in hearing commonly occurring in both ears mainly affecting high pitched sounds
• Inherited – Can be attributed to many different syndromes or through other genetic causes
• Noise induced – Permanent or temporary hearing loss caused by exposure to loud noises; either a sudden very loud sound or more commonly repeated exposure to high level sounds
• Inner ear infection – Often caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Hearing loss likely to be of sudden onset with varying levels of severity
• Head trauma – Fracture of skull can cause damage to the inner ear or the hearing nerve
• Ototoxic medication – Can cause temporary or permanent damage to the cochlea, typically affecting the higher pitches of hearing. They may include lifesaving antibiotics and some chemotherapy drugs
• Wax – a build-up of wax in the outer ear may stop sounds from reaching the ear drum
• Outer ear (otitis externa)/Middle ear (otitis media) infection – Infections and inflammation in the outer ear or middle ear can cause conductive hearing loss
• Ear drum perforation – a hole in the ear drum may be caused by several things including trauma, pressure, ear surgery and infection
• Glue ear – Inflammation in the middle ear with associated fluid filling the middle ear space around the ossicles. The fluid stops the ossicles and ear drum from moving effectively and stops sound from easily passing through to the inner ear

This is the first step in order for us to understand what your current hearing levels are. Our experts will perform a number of different tests depending on what they feel is required to determine whether your hearing is normal or not and, in the event that any impairments are detected, will advise on the best solutions available based on your lifestyle and requirements. All hearing tests are carried out in a sound treated booth or room, following best clinical practice, with testing procedures explained to you prior to commencement.

A hearing assessment may include the following where appropriate:

• Tympanometry – Test to examine the health of the middle ear and ear drum movement
• Pure Tone Audiometry – Test to identify hearing thresholds and the degree of any loss
• Speech Audiometry – Used to determine the weakest intensity for word recognition
• Acoustic Reflexes – Screens the integrity of the auditory nerve pathway
• Audiological or medical history and Hearing evaluation questionnaire
• Comprehensive audiological report or e-report provided
• Consultation and individual management plan