Underlying causes of vertigo or dizziness among patients presenting to Ear, Nose and Throat clinic at a tertiary care hospital in North Central province - Sri Lanka

Introduction:Disturbance to the function of vestibular apparatus or sensory processing its signals presents as vertigo dizziness. Vertigo/dizziness are common symptoms that can cause significant morbidity patients. There is no data on underlying causes for dizziness and available in Sri Lanka. Objective: To determine vertigo/dizziness a cohort Lankan population. Method: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted among patients presenting with ENT clinic at teaching hospital Anuradhapura from March 2016 February 2017. All were assessed diagnosed according protocol accepted standard guidelines. Results: Out 627 patients, 290(46.3%) males. Mean age presentation 51.1 years (SD 15.8). Benign paroxysmal positional (BPPV) commonest diagnosis (n229, 36.5%) followed by migraine (n161, 25.7%) andMénière disease (n50, 8.0%). BPPV significantly higher males (Chi-square 4.3, p .039) females (Chi square 8.254, .004). Acute neuronitis, acute labyrinthine failure, chronic failure functional 4.6%, 4.1%, 2.4% 3% respectively. Conclusion: The major dizziness/vertigo reported this rural population similar other countries.