Clinical profile of elderly patients with dizziness presenting to the emergency department – An observational study

Introduction: Dizziness is a common complaint in the elderly population. Dizziness can be due to a variety of cardiovascular, neurological, vestibular, psychological or unspecified reasons. The etiology of the dizziness among people presenting to ER also varies. We conducted a study to evaluate the clinical and etiological profile of elderly patients presenting with dizziness.Materials and Methods: The study was performed in the Emergency Department. After consent, a semi-structured questionnaire was applied. Systemic evaluation of the patient was conducted to rule out the cause for dizziness. All objective results were noted from the chart. The provisional diagnosis and management given in the ER were also be noted. Their disposition from ER was noted.Results: A total of 147 elderly patients with dizziness were studied during the period. The mean age group of our study was 69.98 ± 8.40 years (range 60 to 96 years). There was a female preponderance in the study population (51.7%). The most common presenting symptom is vertigo (42.9%) followed by Light headedness (27.9%) and blacking out (20.4%). 55.8% of the patients in our study population were advised admission to hospital. 28 were admitted to ward and 35 were admitted to the critical care unit. General medical diagnoses were more common than vestibular causes in our study.Conclusion: The result of our study also highlights the importance of emergency physicians to be trained in managing all the emergencies leading from early identification to their appropriate management of the critical diagnoses among the elderly patients with dizziness.