About B. Todd Troost, MD Expertise vertigo, benign positional vertigo, BPPV, and related ailments.
Experience
Past/Present clients More than 2000 patients with vertigo.
Chairman of Neurology Department for 18 years and examiner for American Board of Neurology for over 25 years. Extensive information is provided on my commericial free website at www.ivertigo.net
Question I am 33 years old and was diagnosed as a child with a unilateral vestibular loss. I adapted well until about 1 1/2 years ago when I starting taking Depakote for Bipolar disorder. About three months after I began taking it I had an episode of spinning vertigo lasting about a minute. Since that time I have had balance difficulties, oscillopsia, 3 epsisodes of rocking vertigo, and was found to have bilateral vestibular hypofunction on an ENG (I was unable to tolerate a rotary chair test). Do you think the Depakote could be the culprit or not? We haven't tried discontinuing it yet becuase it controls the Bipolar so well. Thanks for your time.
Answer Dear Janet:
I really don't think Depakote is a cause of your vestibualr dysfunction - so many people have taken it without the symptoms you describe and so many other people develop vesibular dysfunction either in childhood or as a new acquired condition in adult life. I suspect you got a new viral labyrinthitis and that is the cause of your current problem.
You might try the vestibular exercises for positional vertigo as they are excellent also for re-adapting the vestibular system to a new problem.
