Tool
Symptom Explorer
16 sensations and clues, each mapped to its dizziness category and the conditions it points to. Filter by category, by condition, by free text, or show only the red flags.
- Spinning / rotationVertigo
Ask“Does the room — or you — feel like it's spinning, tilting, or being pulled?”
A true illusion of motion = vertigo, from the vestibular system (peripheral or central).
BPPVVestibular neuritisMénière's diseaseVestibular migraine - Brief, position-triggered spinsVertigo
Ask“Do the spins last only seconds, brought on by lying down or rolling over?”
Brief positional vertigo with normal hearing — peripheral BPPV.
BPPV - Spinning + hearing changeVertigo
Ask“Are attacks (20 min–hours) accompanied by fluctuating hearing, tinnitus, or fullness?”
Episodic vertigo with cochlear symptoms — Ménière's disease.
Ménière's disease - Vertigo + neurological signs▲ red flag
Ask“Any double vision, slurred speech, limb ataxia, or vertical/direction-changing nystagmus?”
Central vertigo — needs urgent posterior-fossa MRI; severity is often mild but the danger is high.
Posterior circulation strokeMultiple sclerosisCerebellar tumour - About to faint / black outPresyncope
Ask“Do you feel as though you're about to pass out, with greying or dimming vision?”
Presyncope from transient cerebral hypoperfusion — not vestibular.
Orthostatic hypotensionVasovagal syncopeArrhythmia - Worse on standingPresyncope
Ask“Does it come on standing or after exertion, and ease on lying down?”
Orthostatic hypotension — check lying and standing blood pressure.
Orthostatic hypotension - Palpitations / exertional▲ red flag
Ask“With palpitations, chest discomfort, or onset during exertion?”
Possible cardiac cause — exclude arrhythmia and structural disease (ECG).
Arrhythmia - Unsteady on the feetDisequilibrium
Ask“Off-balance when standing or walking, but without any spinning?”
Disequilibrium — multisensory, cerebellar, or extrapyramidal.
Bilateral vestibulopathyCerebellar ataxiaParkinsonism - Worse in the darkDisequilibrium
Ask“Much worse in the dark or on uneven ground, drifting to one side?”
Loss of vestibular/proprioceptive cues with visual reliance.
Bilateral vestibulopathyPeripheral neuropathy - Vision bounces when walkingDisequilibrium
Ask“Does your vision bounce or blur when you walk (oscillopsia)?”
Bilateral vestibular loss — often after ototoxic drugs (gentamicin).
Bilateral vestibulopathy - Floating / woozy / foggyNonspecific dizziness
Ask“Is it a vague floating, woozy, or 'mental fog' feeling, hard to pin down?”
Nonspecific dizziness — psychiatric or metabolic; exclude organic causes first.
AnxietyHyperventilationDepression - Anxious / panicky with itNonspecific dizziness
Ask“Do you feel anxious, breathless, or panicky during the episodes?”
Anxiety or hyperventilation syndrome (respiratory alkalosis).
AnxietyHyperventilation - Provoked by neck movementCervicogenic
Ask“Triggered by neck movement or sustained posture, with neck pain (often post-whiplash)?”
Cervicogenic dizziness — a clinical diagnosis of exclusion.
Cervicogenic dizziness - Worse in busy visual scenesVisual vertigo
Ask“Worse in supermarkets, crowds, on escalators, in traffic, or scrolling screens?”
Visual vertigo — over-reliance on vision (visual dependence).
Visual vertigoPPPDVestibular migraine - Rocking after travelMal de débarquement
Ask“A persistent rocking or swaying that began after a cruise, flight, or long drive?”
Mal de débarquement syndrome — paradoxically starts after the motion stops.
MdDS - Chronic, non-spinning, >3 monthsPPPD
Ask“Daily unsteadiness for ≥3 months, worse upright and with motion or visual complexity?”
PPPD — functional, often following an acute vestibular or psychological trigger.
PPPD