Psoriatic arthritis and dizziness: Link, vertigo, and more – Medical News Today

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is inflammatory arthritis often associated with a skin condition called psoriasis. One PsA symptom is joint pain. It can also cause whole-body (systemic) symptoms such as vertigo and dizziness.

PsA is a chronic condition with no permanent cure. But there are several treatment options to help manage symptoms. Recognizing and treating PsA as soon as possible can help prevent symptoms such as dizziness from worsening or leading to long-term health problems.

In this article, we discuss PsA and dizziness. We also examine whether PsA causes dizziness and vertigo and the potential treatment options.

PsA may cause dizziness in some people.

While people often use the term dizziness interchangeably with vertigo, dizziness is a broad area that includes an array of sensations or feelings, such as:

• feeling unsteady or off-balance
• weakness in the limbs
• moments of lightheadedness or faintness
• wooziness

Other symptoms may accompany dizziness, such as nausea. Sudden movements or walking may make it worse.

There are many potential causes of dizziness, including:

Systemic autoimmune disorders such as PsA may cause dizziness, unsteadiness, and vertigo. An autoimmune disease is when the body cannot differentiate between healthy cells and foreign bodies, so attacks itself.

There is evidence that PsA may cause damage to the inner ear, which could result in dizziness. One study concluded that individuals with PsA are more likely to experience dizziness, tinnitus, vertigo, and unsteadiness than those without the condition.

PsA and vertigo also appear to share a link. Vertigo differs from dizziness in a few ways. Symptoms of vertigo include:

• tilting of the room or surrounding objects
• swaying or spinning
• a floating sensation

As with dizziness, damage to the inner ear may impair a person’s balance, resulting in vertigo. Vertigo typically goes away without treatment. But individuals with PsA who experience vertigo may require treatment to help manage it.

A 2019 study of 60 individuals with PsA and its impact on hearing loss or impairment, dizziness, and vertigo concluded that approximately 23% of the people with PsA had balance problems. In addition, over half of the people with PsA exhibited signs of hearing loss or impairment.

Since PsA may damage the inner ear through immune-related inflammation, this could impact both balance and hearing. These findings are consistent with other research, which found that 60% of individuals with PsA have inner ear damage, balance issues, and significant hearing loss.

There are several treatments for vertigo and dizziness in people with PsA.

Research from 2011 suggests that one option is vestibular rehabilitation, an …….

Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/psoriatic-arthritis-dizziness