Cervicogenic Dizziness | Causes | Assessment | Tutorial

Cervicogenic dizziness is one of many potential causes of dizziness and is diagnosed by way of exclusion

Cervicogenic dizziness (CGD) has been defined in medical journals "as an a specific sensation of changed spatial orientation and disequilibrium as a consequence of a proprioceptive disorder of the cervical afferents".

The symptoms of CGD are dizziness (sometimes accompanied by a painful stiffness in the neck and/or headache) and these typically occur with specific body positions and movements of the cervical spine.

For the time being there aren't any definitive clinical or laboratory diagnostic tests available to help show that the dizziness of the patient has a cervicogenic origin.

A diagnosis of CGD is only ever therefore a diagnosis of exclusion. In every case the therapist must ensure that  other potential causes of dizziness and related symptoms have been excluded.

CDG often responds very well to manual therapy treatment which may include: 

• Stability exercises
• Stretching
• Massage
• Addressing Posture 
• Joint mobilization
• Trigger Point Therapy
• Neural Dynamic Techniques
• Relaxation Techniques

Therapists should be aware of potential CAD problems when working round the base of the skull.

Remember that just because there maybe ostensibly a CGD component, there may still often be a vestibular component lurking in the background which will also need to be correctly addressed