Clinical Study of Cases of Vertigo and Disequilibrium in Clinical Pediatrics

Abstract

Sensations of vertigo or disequilibrium in children are usually simplified to the ambiguous complaints 'feel giddy' or 'vertigo'. However, these complaints are rare and there are few clinical reports of such cases in clinical pediatrics.
We examined 41 patients under 18 years old. Twenty-four were female and 17 were male. These patients were brought to our clinic at Saitama Children's Medical Center with complaints of vertigo or disequilibrium between 1992 and 1996. The mean age on initial examination was 6.9 years. The frequency of orthostatic dysregulation (OD) was higher (11 cases; 27%), and 9 of the 11 patients were above 10 years old. The frequencies of acute cerebellar ataxia (9 cases) and multiple sclerosis (4 cases) followed that of OD. In the lower onset-age group (under 5 years old), gait instability due to palsy of the lower limbs was frequently seen. Cases of sensory disturbance were seen more frequently in the higher onset-age group.
To differentiate symptoms due to disturbances of the central or peripheral nerve system, we should consider the age-related characteristic of the diseases and developmental level.