





NEWS AND
REVIEWS

By Susan L. Engel-Arieli, M.D.

Below are summaries of articles that
appeared in recent medical journals. 

WHEN IS VERTIGO A SERIOUS
FORM OF DIZZINESS?  Physicians
from the Mayo Clinic recently wrote an
article intended to help physicians
distinguish between serious vertigo and
minor dizziness. The article states that
most people with dizziness, a "whirling
sensation in the head with a tendency to
fall," had one of the following: (a)
impaired blood flow to the nervous
system, heart, and/or blood vessels; (b)
disequilibrium (imbalance when standing
or walking) such as that caused by
multiple sensory deficits; (c) vertigo such
as that caused by Meniere's disease or
vestibular neuronitis; (d) other causes.

The authors suggest that correctly
diagnosing vertigo is important because
serious forms of vertigo (a type of
dizziness defined as "a disturbance in
which the external world seems to
revolve around the individual or in which
the individual seems to revolve in
space") are caused by conditions
associated with increased mortality or
disability of one month or more.

The authors suggest that physicians do
the following to determine if a patient
has serious vertigo: (a) distinguish
vertigo from dizziness; (b) take a
detailed history from the patient, asking
when dizziness occurs and if there are
other ear or neurologic symptoms and
patterns); (c) perform a good physical
exam, including a neurologic exam and
ear exam, a check for nystagmus
(abnormal eye movements), and a head-
hanging maneuver.

These authors also provide their
hypotheses on how to predict if vertigo
will become serious.

See Froehling, D., Silverstein, M., et al.,
"Does This Dizzy Patient Have a Serious
Form of Vertigo?, JAMA, Vol. 271, No.
5, Feb. 2, 1994, pages 385-388.

DIZZINESS AND CHILDREN 
Children can frequently feel and say they
are dizzy. The causes can be nearly
endless, and in order to make a
diagnosis, physicians must take into
account the symptoms, age, and test
findings of the child. 








The author of a recent article discusses
specific neurologic, postural, and
equilibrium tests that can be used by
physicians for different age groups of
children to try to determine the problem.
She also recommends using ENG
(electronystagmography) and rotational
tests.

The author also provides an interesting
chart showing symptoms and listing
potential tests, exam findings, and likely
diagnoses. For example, a 16-month to
5-year-old child with vertigo, no hearing
loss, nystagmus, a normal EEG
(electroencephalogram), and an
equivocal ENG may most likely have
benign paroxysmal vertigo.

See Eviatar, Lydia, "Dizziness in
Children," Otolaryngologic Clinics of
North America, Vol. 27, No. 3, June
1994, pages 557-71.

REPOSITIONING MANEUVER
FOR BPPV  Physicians from Ohio
State University who studied 27 patients
with BPPV pointed out in a recent
article that the disease might not be 
self-limiting or benign. Drs. Robert
Baloh and Vincente Honrubia, in a prior
article, had reported that 1/3 of people
with BPPV might have symptoms for
longer than one year.

One theory about BPPV is that it is
caused by free-floating particles in the
semicircular canals of the inner ear. The
Ohio State physicians performed a
maneuver, which they called particle
repositioning, similar to the Semont
(liberatory) maneuver and the Brandt-
Daroff exercises. The maneuver was
combined with gentle shaking of the
head. Nineteen of the 27 patients had
complete resolution of all symptoms; two
had resolution of their vertigo but not of
accompanying unsteadiness; four did not
have resolution of their symptoms, and
two were found to have a problem other
than BPPV.

See Welling, D.B., and Barnes, D.E.,
"Particle Repositioning for Benign
Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo,"
Laryngoscope, 104 (8, part 1), Aug. 1994,
pages 946-949.

VESTIBULAR TRAINING,
DRUGS, AND BPPV  Physicians in
Japan studied 61 patients with BPPV.
They were divided into three groups.
Group 1 received only a drug called
betahistine mesylate, not available in the
U.S. Group 2 received only vestibular
training, and Group 3 received vestibular
training plus betahistine mesylate.
Vestibular training (VT) consisted of the
patients being asked to do specific
exercises three times daily for eight
weeks. Improvement rates were higher in
Group 3 (both VT and the drug) than in
the other groups. The authors question
whether the effects of VT can be
enhanced by certain drugs and suggest
that studies should be done with other
medications. See Fujino, A., et al.,
"Vestibular Training for Benign
Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo," Archives
of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck
Surgery, Vol. 120, 1994, page 497.

HISTAMINE AND MENIERE'S 
Dr. J. Roy Guyther, of Mechanicsville,
Maryland, anecdotally writes that
intravenous infusions of histamine
diphosphate can relieve the severe
nausea and dizziness of Meniere's
disease and can lengthen the interval
between episodes. This idea was not
presented as a study but simply as a
letter of opinion published recently in a
journal. See Guyther, J. Roy, IV
Histamine for Meniere's, Cortlandt
Forum, May 1994, page 78.

INNER EAR HAIR CELL
REGENERATION  Researchers from
the University of Washington in Seattle,
Wash., presented some interesting data
recently about hair cells in the inner ear.
We know that hearing and balance
disorders can be caused by loss of hair
cells. Studies in
birds have shown
that their inner
ear hair cells can
recover after drug
or noise damage.
Preliminary
research in
mammals seems
to indicate that
regeneration may
occur in higher
animals and
perhaps in
humans as well.
The researchers
postulate that stimulation or
transplantation of inner ear hair cells in
damaged human ears may be possible in
the future. See Tsue, T., et al., "Hair
Cell Regeneration in the Inner Ear,"
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery,
111, 1994, pages 281-301.

POTENTIAL MARKERS FOR
PERILYMPH FISTULAS  The
diagnosis of perilymph fistulas (small
tears between the inner and middle ears)
can be very difficult to diagnose, and this
is true even at the operating table.
Researchers from the Washington
University in St. Louis, Mo., and at the
Bowman-Gray School of Medicine in
Winston-Salem, N.C., have reported the
identification and quantification of 30
proteins in human perilymph fluid from
the ear. Two proteins, apo D and apo J,
were found to be most prominent. The
researchers hope that more studies will
help clarify the significance of their
findings and that one or more of these
proteins may be useful in the diagnosis
of perilymph fistulas. See Thalmann, I.,
Kohut, R., et al., "Protein Profile of
Human Perilymph," Otolaryngology -
Head and Neck Surgery, Sept. 1994, pages
273-280.

Below are summaries of articles appearing
in recent consumer publications:

BALANCE AND T'AI CHI  An
article starting on page 71 of the
December 1994 issue of Prevention
magazine discussed the use of t'ai chi by
the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago
for people with balance disorders.
Timothy Hain, M.D., of the institute,
told a reporter that t'ai chi could be
useful for these patients because the
movements were natural, helped build
muscle strength, had a good repertoire
of head/eye motion, were fun, and
relaxed the mind. Dr. Hain found that
after 22 patients participated in t'ai chi
for two months, they had about a 10
percent improvement in balance. See
Stocker, Sharon, "Catch Your Balance
with T'ai Chi."

SPIN DOCTORING  An article in
Your Health magazine gave an overview
of vestibular disorders and discussed the
similarity of symptoms among different
vestibular disorders and the difficulty
doctors have in making a correct
diagnosis. The article says that of those
patients eligible for vestibular
rehabilitation (and who are treated by it)
85 percent improve and 30 percent
recover completely. See Vaughan, Don,
"Spin Doctoring," Your Health, Nov. 15,
1994, pages 49-54. 

HEAD SPINNING TOO  In a
Woman's Day article ("Your Health,"
Jan. 10, 1995, page 36), Marianne
Legato, M.D., presents an overview of
some of the causes of vertigo and also
briefly discusses treatment modes such as
vestibular rehabilitation. She points out
some non-vestibular causes of head
spinning such as overexertion,
dehydration, certain medicines, and
mentions potential solutions for these
problems.

WHO SAYS EARS ARE NOT
ATTRACTIVE?  Andrew Rooney, the
author of "The Ears Don't Have It," on
page 22 of the January/February 1995
issue of The Saturday Evening Post, has
fun with ears. Although this article is
probably of no scientific or medical
interest, some parts are thought-
provoking as well as amusing. For
instance, the author says that "ears were
poorly placed in relationship to our
necessity to wear clothing that is often
pulled on over the head, too. . . . The
head itself can be forced through even
quite a small aperture, but the ears
invariably get caught. . . . If the human
body is ever done over, no part of it
needs redesign more than the ears."

PUTTING AN END TO
DIZZINESS  An article on pages 4
and 5 of The Johns Hopkins Medical
Letter for November 1994 presents an
overview of dizziness. The authors state
that dizziness is the most common
complaint of people over 75 and that
dizziness produces as much disability as
such problems as arthritis, heart diseases,
and high blood pressure. They review
what maintains balance, what can go
wrong, when to see your doctor, and how
vestibular disorders are treated.
Additionally, they provide useful
information about what causes
orthostatic hypotension (a drop in blood
pressure, which produces dizziness
sometimes when people stand up) and
how to prevent yourself from falling. 

MENIERE'S DISEASE  Early in her
article, "Meniere's Disease - A Balancing
Act" (Harvard Health Letter, Vol. 20, No.
1, Nov. 1994, pages 3-5), Leah Garnett 
notes that there is no known cure for
Meniere's disease, although there are
treatments. We know that the attacks of
vertigo, fluctuating hearing loss, and/or
tinnitus can vary in severity and duration
from episode to episode and from one
person to another. Studies have shown
that remissions can occur in two-thirds of
the people with this disease and usually
occur within eight years after onset.
Interestingly, the author also points out
that Meniere's disease may be caused by
a virus, and at least one Harvard
professor suspects that the disease may
be a variant of viral labyrinthitis, an
inner ear infection.

Author's Note: Please note that neither Dr.
Engel-Arieli or VEDA can recommend any
particular treatment for any particular
disorder or be responsible for an
individual's reaction to a particular
treatment. These reviews are not intended
as a substitute for professional health care
by your own physician. Please do not
begin treatment without first checking with
your physician.






OCCUPATIONAL
THERAPY

By Doreit S. Bialer, M.A.,
O.T.R./L., and Joy Brett, M.S.,
O.T.R.

(Ms. Bialer is the director of occupational
therapy at Long Island Pediatric and
Adult Therapy Center in Great Neck, N.Y.
Ms. Brett is the coordinator of the
occupational therapy department at that
same clinic.)

The vestibular system is located in the
inner ear and is responsible for detecting
changes in the position of the head. This
sophisticated
system has
many
connections
in the nervous
system that
influence
muscle tone,
coordinate
sensory
processing,
maintain
posture and balance, and help the eyes
to fixate and gaze on objects in the
environment. The vestibular system also
works in conjunction with the cerebellum
to help individuals develop a sense of
where their bodies are in space, which
allows them to move freely in the
environment without relying on vision.

Vestibular dysfunction can be disabling
since the patient may experience nausea,
spinning, dizziness, disorientation, and
lack of balance. These symptoms may
lead to difficulties at work, at home, or
in participating in community functions.
Our goal is to help clients return to
work, become independent in daily life
tasks, and continue as active members of
their communities.

When a patient is referred to an
occupational therapist by a physician, the
therapist evaluates specific movements
or components of activities that elicit
negative vestibular responses such as
nausea, dizziness, and imbalance. People
with vestibular dysfunction also often
experience vision difficulties and trouble
with proprioception (body-in-space
awareness). Through rehabilitation and
exercise, we help people learn to counter
the negative effects of the vestibular
system and to achieve diminished or
extinguished symptoms.

Patients who undergo vestibular therapy
may find themselves involved in a home
exercise program that reinforces therapy.
Exercises performed in the clinic and at
home involve moving the head and eyes
quickly, doing balance exercises with
eyes closed and eyes open, simulating
daily activities with which the client is
having trouble, training for mobility, and
working on postural endurance. Each
program is individually designed to
address the systems (visual,
proprioceptive, and vestibular) that need
to be strengthened in order to overcome
conflicting messages from a dysfunctional
vestibular system. The therapist designs
the home program, challenges the
vestibular system in the clinic, and
adjusts the program as the patient
improves.

Patients who faithfully perform their
home exercises generally experience
marked physical improvement and a
return to a higher quality of life. The 
rehabilitative program at our center on
Long Island lasts from three to nine
months and includes frequent
reevaluation to assess each patient's
functional gains. We have had many
success stories with our vestibular
rehabilitation program.


SUPPORT
GROUPS

Dr. Jeffrey Harris, chief of the
department of otolaryngology at the
University of California - San Diego,
spoke to the Sacramento, Calif.,
Meniere's group on "Dizziness, Its Cause
and Its Cure" in December. In January,
the group held an open discussion.

Neil Shepard, Ph.D., director of the
vestibular testing center at The
University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor,
spoke recently to the Royal Oak, Mich.,
support group on the use of vestibular
rehabilitation therapy in Meniere's
disease.

Michael Politzer, O.D., a vision 
specialist, spoke in November to the
Middle Tennessee group in Nashville.
The group's fall newsletter mentioned
possible meeting topics including
responses to treatment, aids for survival
at home, safety, filling the void when you
lose your career, dating/social life,
finding a doctor, needs of spouses,
humor, hearing loss, fears, depression,
surgery, diet, legal problems, and others.

Dr. Cindy Kish, an otolaryngologist with
an interest in vestibular rehabilitation,
spoke recently to the newly formed
support group in Fort Wayne, Ind. Her
topic was "Diagnosis and Management of
Dizziness and Balance Disorders." In
February, a physician will speak to the
group on biofeedback and relaxation
techniques.

Heather Whitestone, Miss America 1995,
spoke to the members of the St. Louis,
Mo., group in January. Ms. Whitestone,
21, lost her hearing when she was 1, and
is the first Miss America with a profound
disability. "I really believe that the most
handicapped person in the whole world
is a negative thinker," she is quoted as
saying in a news release. 


STORIES SOUGHT

The Vestibular Disorders Association is
seeking vestibular success stories for a
sequel to its book, Stories and Strategies.
The idea is to collect and publish a wide
variety of short first-person accounts
about living with inner-ear disorders. In
Stories, the authors spoke in their own
voices about what happened to them and
what they did about it. This time, VEDA
would especially like to hear from
people who have become symptom-free
or nearly so.

If you have a success story to tell, please
send it to us. If you know others who
have gotten well, please ask them to
write to VEDA, P.O. Box 4467,
Portland, OR 97208-4467.









HANK YOU



We thank all of
the following for
their contributions
to VEDA through Dec. 20, 1994: 

Friends ($500 to $999): Steven Smith, Michigan; Kellie and
Clifford DeLine, Colorado; Larry Kreicher, Connecticut;
Alliance Capital Management, New York.   

Associates ($100 to $499): Harland Hoghren, California; A.H.
Duvall, Florida; Richard H. Krause, Oregon; Elizabeth
Eastman, George Viscomi M.D., Michigan; Henry Chaffee,
Florida; Bess Pitt, Texas; Elena McClain, California; Dr.
David Kessler, Indiana; Deanne Bonnar, Massachusetts; Mr.
& Mrs. Domenick Celentano, New Jersey; Marsha Mayers,
New York; Kenneth Brookler M.D., New York; Naomi
Lederer, New York; Stephen and Ruth Hendel, New York;
Steven Millen M.D., Wisconsin; Lillian Dorcas, Alaska; Mary
Ann Watson, Oregon; Carol Kanter, New York; Martin Gizzi
M.D., New Jersey; McCain Charitable Trust, Florida.
 
Contributors ($10 to $99): ALABAMA: Lewis Ellenburg,
Sarah Davis. ALASKA: Donald Abel, Marilyn Schoder, David
Beal M.D., Monica Weyhe, Shirley Jacobson, Susan
Rodriguez. ARIZONA: Norma Raya, Fred Lucas, Linda
Goeglein, Norma Raya, Roberta Merrill, Harriet Schultz, Fred
Guilford, Mary Haertel, Charles Isaacs, Jerry Eastridge.
ARKANSAS: Richard Brothers, Henry Terrill, Wilbur Martin.
 
CALIFORNIA: Susan Garry, Lillian Kuhn, Debby Zurzolo,
Robert Ulmer, George Peters, James Garvie, Lisa Walker,
Karolyn Zebarth, Helmut Zoike, Ann Ulrich, Julie
Yamamoto, Jean McClure, Gary & Diane Hahnert, Peggy
Van Patten, A.C. Steele, Joann Caouette, Richardine
Freeman, Peter Willey, C.J. Ziady, Jon Crawford, Adeline
Amaro, Jane Gauthier, Vivian Gatzert, Margaret Weilhart,
Mary Shores, Virginia Bodenburg, Gene Marple, Lee
Beckom, Lee Law, Thomas Chester, Larry Strom, Myron
Roth, Ronald Roberto, Louise Fowle, Misa Stroker, Beverly
Kluger, Stuart Lasher, Laura Kerhin, Lee Law, Jacqueline
Cursi, Judy Novell, B. Christa Vragel, Shari Parriott, Mario
Persico, Wendee Vivenzi, Roseanne Brown, Cynthia Polecritti,
Susan McDonald, Carol Springer, Richard Rykoff, Sally
Smith, Julia Leonard, Beverly Reynolds, Dr. & Mrs. Walter
Hunt, Sally Smith, Violet Ohmert, Alice Werbel, John
Fitzgerald, Josephine Tarver, Mary Lou Wood, Arturita
Tolentino, John Pino, Jana Fouladpour, Meg Flaherty, Shirley
Rapkin, Jean Houchens, Chris Blanchard, Fred Meinzen,
Irving Abrams, Carolyn Zebarth, John Carlson, Evelyn
Graybill, Stan Waliszek, Shane Gregory, Dolores Frye. 

COLORADO: Dorothy Fresenborg, Lois Jensen, Janice
Gilland, Lois Jensen, Jeanne Sanders, Lydia Coulter, James
Turre, Mr. & Mrs. Robert Weber, Lois & Richard Burke,
Marilyn Girouard, Kim Saltus Johnston, Mary Ann Neumann,
John & Joan Cook, Mr. & Mrs. Dana Switzer, Patty Haybach.
CONNECTICUT: Dawn Danis, Denis Bonito, Marie Miller,
Charles Hamlin M.D., Terry Kelly, Lawrence Klein, Grace
Longo, Cynthia Goldberg, Gary Cherhoniak, Rita Tryon,
Dorothy Coughlin, Jill Durall, Nancy Howie, Gerald Labriola
M.D., Mary Dargan, Nicholas Sinisi, Wes Loker, Susan
Tupper, Elaine Brodeur. DELAWARE: Ted Zink, W.
Roberts Richmond, George Moore, Bernadine Lunski.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Herbert Franklin, Brad
Peipmeier. 
 
FLORIDA: Sarah Gross, Susan Cohen, Edna Saint-Thomas,
Christie Johnson, Connie Campbell, Josephine Natale, Jo
Yoakum, Lillian Archer, Mary Panagotacos, Jennie Bond,
Clifton Duty, Allen De Graw, Louise Darby, Susan Kellett,
Carl MacKenzie, Henry Getzoff, Donna Bendell, Beatrice
Barr, Dorothy Bering, Lisa Jerigan, Elmer Swanson, Marjorie
Braxton, Reba Weber, Mary Follett Wright, Marilyn
Krumholz, Dorothy Robinson, Roberta Bastie, Gilda Gutlove,
Julianne Bennett, Karen Stevens, Claire Baggerly, John
Vandigriff, Rigoberto Gonzalez. 

GEORGIA: Harriet Leslie, Gaye Cronin, Olga Conley,
Margaret Tandel, Peggy Tiller, Mary Sumner, Mary
Castiglione, James French, Donn Chrisman, Louise Williams.
HAWAII: Robert Schwarzhaupt, Tamar Weber. IDAHO: Tim
Foster, Shirley Caldwell. 

ILLINOIS: Edward Twohill, Mary Coniglio, Teresa Campana,
Jim Gonzalez, Mildred Eychaner, Vera Richards, Mildred
Wood, Delores Clay, Chester Moculeski, Darleen Runge,
Timothy Ives, Jesse Irick, Donald Fawcett, S.L. Nielsen,
Dwight Elliott, Joseph Pompei, Natalie Lamb, Frieda Volpel,
Dorothy Knudsen, Eleanor Bergren, Arlene Stielow. 

INDIANA: James Young, G.K. Bhagavan, R.C. Cinert, Cecilia
Weber, Carol Fitzgerald. IOWA: Evelyn Dunn, Lloyd
Shelangoski, Johanna Dippold, Joann Banghart, Jeff Jeambeg
& LuAnn Vondracek. KANSAS: John Voss, Barbara
Edwards, John Peterson, Barbara Cosner, Dr. & Mrs. David
Travis. KENTUCKY: N.F. Northern.

LOUISIANA: Mary Jo Griffin, Lorraine Vallon, Doris
Branton, Wallace Rubin M.D., Sidney Sandoz Jr. MAINE:
Don DeDoes, Susan Dunlap RPT, Mary Dyer. MARYLAND:
Martha Kline, Cleo Jerrell, Charles Tull, Elizabeth Garmatz,
Celia Weinstein, Mary Zamary R.N., Mary Personette, Lavern
Riggs, Mildred Maddox, Jean & John Erskine.
 
MASSACHUSETTS: Edward Flaherty, Margo Blake, Nancy
Friedrichs, Ronald Mehlhorn, John & Anne Kendrick, Betty
Commerford,  Marilyn Steele, Virginia Strauss, Joan Chaplick,
Michele Moran, Cynthia Jacques, Kathy Longo, Ruth Norr,
Ann Charlesworth, Mukesh Thakkar, William Brackman,
Angie Walsh, Elizabeth Quirk, Frances Clohecy, Sr. Murielle
Bourgeois, Jane Raymond, Paul Pitman, Eunice Good,
Claudia Broghamer, Mary Slack, Norma Lipson, Benjamin
Miller, Jill Pinnola, Frederica Cushman, Paul Harrigan.
 
MICHIGAN: Beverly Lynch, Stuart Doneson, Steven
Flaggman, Doreen Wise-Friedenberg, Gary Potter, Larry
French, Sara Essex, Dorothy Schmidt, Signe Pekkarinen, Ron
O'Brien, Patricia Lacasse, Jeanne Srock, Diane Hillman, Betty
Saputo, Caryl Kerber, Reinard Nanzig, Colleen Stanczak,
Peggy Kilgus, June Evans, Steven Eisenberg, Mary Jo Regan,
Peg Turney, J.D. Bulone, Mary & Tom Rogers, Lois Jensen,
Verna Chambers, Beverly Lynch, Stephen Fisher, Michaela
Begg.
 
MINNESOTA: Deborah Wingert, Alice Fingerson, Mary
Spinler, Linda Fort, Angela Kaiser, Charles Bobertz.
MISSISSIPPI: William Stokes. MISSOURI: Floyd Chapman,
Olive Duffy, Kathleen Black, Adrianna Avellino. MONTANA:
Ed Kahoe, Sherry Marsillo, Carl Swanson. NEBRASKA: Paul
Kreuscher. NEVADA: Winnie Crump, Joe Mochnick, Betty
Hensley, Lon Hurst, Susan Schwartz. NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Dudley Weider M.D., Norma Moore, Ruth Edwards. 

NEW JERSEY: Jennifer Schutte, Susan Pepe, Amy Klein,
Walter Lyon, Joseph & Sylvia Nichols, Fran DeGregorio,
Margaret Fiori, Susan Marx, Bob Hackney, Anita Drescher,
Barbara Feigen, Jill Spasser, Anne Moore, Cathy Sogorka,
Ron Jablonski, Christina Cohon, Marie Wehling, Margaret
Vishnupad, Jeffrey Levin, Lisa Wagner, Tunie Missry,
Celestine Moran, Rita Gavasci, Mary Nallin, Robert
Bergeman, Jerome Grever, Frank Dolcemascolo, Alexander
Hochheiser, Joel F. Lehrer M.D., Martin Warshaw, Vera
Sumutka. NEW MEXICO: Milward Pinckney.

NEW YORK: Marissa Panigrosso, Robert Benson, Mary
Anne Casola, Helen Vega, Nancy Mesh, Audrey Mecteau,
Frank Mascolo Jr., Naomi Utevsky, Carol Iannello, Jerry
Wolkoff, Donald Witt, Sam Weissman, Clelia Cannarella,
Carole Mitchel, William Crawford, Mary Braverman, Nancy
Mahler, Lewis French, Maria Lyons, Sandy Hyman, Sheila
Rabinowitz, Rita Demers, Doreit Bialer OTR/L, Ellen Bondy,
Bernice Heller, Rose Benderly Ph.D., Margaret Venezia,
Dorothy Launer, Barbara Galgano, Thomas Curtin, Gail
Higgins, George Holzmann, Howard Ordemann, Kathryn
Waluk PT, Margaret Naughton, Connie Dimaggio, Pearl
Schnur, Suzanne Brennan, Dr. Maryanne Geskie, Joyce Sica,
Michael Chatoff, Ernest Puce, Sylvia Heim, Carmela Cottone,
C.L.Saypol, Shirley Weiss, Helen Goldberg, David Critelli,
James Troutt, Norman Griner, Armando Girillo, Patty Busa,
Libby Nelson, George Mahoney, Fanny Acuna, Malinda
Myers, Lucille Wassmansdorf, Yakov Michael, Richard Tripp,
Margaret Gillin, Margaret Arena, Jane Schlick, Barbara
Freeman, Gloria Balzano, Linda Meaney, Sandra Wiesel,
Sandord Levine, John Miele, Susan Drucker, Paul Neumann,
Mary McCarthy, Frances Wagner.

NORTH CAROLINA: Gloria Herritage, Charles George,
Nate Sanson, Dorothy Langston, Nancy Dobbs, Richard
McCallum, Leo Farr, Donna Hodges, Kathy Nelson, Ingeborg
Bush, Sylvia Searcy, Marilyn Johnson, Robert Kirkpatrick,
Anne Freeze. NORTH DAKOTA: Patti Miedema, Patricia
Christiansen.

OHIO: Lillian Sherwin, Robert Clark, Lillian Sherwin, George
Tyler, Janet Kadunc, Nancy Helmick, Michael Schaeffer,
William Reynolds, Kenneth Mauk, Lisa Billings, Robert
Roberts Sr., Reta Bisesi, Kathleen Kins, Bernice Mills, Mario
Dentino, Monica Kandrac, Elizabeth Fesler, Rita Batcho,
Steve Reasoner, Miriam Faud RN, Frank Gaal, Raymond
Juskiw, Mary Binion, Dorothy S. Rice, Nancy Roberts,
Stephen Mosher, Suzanne Forsgren. OKLAHOMA: Jean
Tanner.

OREGON: Barbara Goetze, Charlotte Shupert, Susie
Eckerson, Carol Whitman, Betsy Mercer, Bernd Crasemann,
Elizabeth Shane, Martha Torson, Bertha Nelson, Velma
Nicholson, Margaret Hogg, Leo Ferroni, Pat Waalkes,
Kenneth Starr, June O. Underwood, Scott Moreland,
Elizabeth Anne Korn, Wendell Cook, Marge Dillon, Bette
Richards, Colleen Decker, Dorothea Radel, Charlotte
Shupert, Shirley DeJong, Norma McKain, Debbie Goldberg,
Norma McKain, John Chester M.D., Ted Norton, Karolyn
Eiseman, Lisa Haven.

PENNSYLVANIA: Lorraine Wescott, Jim & Barbara Nagel,
Susie Goodman, Marilyn Albert, Deborah Simon, Rosanne
Bostock, Dorothy Clark, Haarryette Radcliffe, Joan Palladino,
Muriel Jackson, Robert Slater M.D., Mary Ann Heidenwag,
Jessie Permar, Edwin Allison, Martha Leslie, Nancy Persinger,
Don Leisey, Gretchen Cochran, Dorothy Yarnell, Angela
Newman, Ruben Pottash M.D. PUERTO RICO: Gaspar
Leon, Patria Echevarria. RHODE ISLAND: Patty Alperin,
Deborah Smith, Harriet Reed, Margaret LeBlanc. SOUTH
CAROLINA: Frances Ross, Dr. Suzanne Cormier, Harry
McDowell, Bruce Stapleton, Kay Hanson. SOUTH DAKOTA:
Karl Bachmayer, Joanne Carson, Alice Wrage, Dolores
Shanks.

TENNESSEE: Joanne Jones, Anita Nix, Debbie Pigna,
Robert Bryant, Bill Nunnelly, Richard Godwin, Mr. & Mrs.
Robert Jarratt, Rosa Serra, Meredith Leslie, Mary Timmons,
Janet Clark. TEXAS: Elizabeth Faye Hicks, Sybil Johnson,
Edna Davidson, Theresa Holden, Mr. & Mrs. Earl Landis,
Rufus Burnett, Babatunde Akomolafe, Raymond Hickey, Gale
Robertson, Jennie Davis, Betty Wharton, May Pickett, Carol
Irwin, Joe Stanley, Sandra Jones, Melissa Pickett, Hope
Higinbotham, Mary Engler. VERMONT: R. DeWitt Mallary
Jr., Karen Towslee, Cindy Bryant. 

VIRGINIA: Susan Mottershead, Howard Olson, Sava Alvis,
Anthony Denice, Charles Brooks, Raymond Bowman, Sharon
Brendel, Sherry Williams, Charles Olson, Charlotte Flinkow,
Mary Horan, Craig Slingluff, Jeanne Webb, Debbie Mayer,
Abdul Ghafoor, Louis Mauro, Carrington Dunlap, Amy
Hillsman, Donna Mayer, Dianne Cahill, Debbie Noble,
Elizabeth Garay.

WASHINGTON: Marvin Carmichael, Pam Roy, Anne
Kunkel, Martha Waldman, Linda Peterson, Sharon Covey,
Steve Rees, Annemarie Warren, Karen Wescom, Art Edburg,
Alan Langman M.D., Alice Alden, Helen Clark, Maria Rosa
Martins, Nyla Jensen, R. Kevin Klise, Ielene Edmonson,
Cheryl Bucher, Lois Latorra, Betty Donnerberg, The Williams
Family, Joyce Brigham, Phillip Friend, Dorothy Sturdivant,
Sue Parks, Richard White, Mary Oliver, Hildegard McNeil.
 
WEST VIRGINIA: Sarah Horton, Jerry King, Susan Scott.
WISCONSIN: Beverly Sterbin, Sandra Carlson, Eugene
Schmidt, Aletta Vandervelde, Joyce Buss, Elaine Fouts, Tom
Lenz. WYOMING: Jane Camenzind. AUSTRALIA: Michael
O'Brien, Kathy Stoddart, Anita Newman. CANADA: Philip
Sherlock, Liz Leedham, Arlene Steel, Perry Bender, Shirley
Read. SINGAPORE: Kay Ehrhart.



 
DISCLAIMER

The information in this newsletter is not
intended as a substitute for professional health
care. VEDA does not advocate any particular
course of treatment for any particular disorder.
The opinions expressed in articles in On the
Level are those of the authors and not
necessarily those of On the Level, or the VEDA
medical and scientific advisors, or the VEDA
board of directors.

NEWS BRIEFS

NEW ADVISOR  Susan J. Herdman,
Ph.D., P.T., of the University of Miami
School of Medicine, has joined VEDA's
group of distinguished medical and
scientific advisors. Dr. Herdman, author
of Contemporary Perspectives in
Rehabilitation, has published widely on
vestibular rehabilitation and related
topics.

VISION THERAPY  VEDA would be
interested in hearing from anyone who
knows of practitioners who recommend
eye exercises as a treatment for dizziness
or of any scientific studies of the use of
eye exercises to treat dizziness. Please
send information to VEDA, PO Box
4467, Portland, OR 97208-4467.

BONE BANK

If you experience an ear problem such as
deafness, dizziness, or infection, the
scientific study of your inner ears could
help in the search for causes and
treatments of hearing and balance
disorders. According to a news release,
the National Temporal Bone Hearing
and Balance Pathology Resource
Registry (The Registry) seeks people
willing to bequeath their temporal bones
to medical research.

The inner ear is inaccessible for study
during life. Only when the temporal
bones are removed after death can the
inner ear be studied. 

To find out more about becoming a
donor, call The Registry at (800) 822-
1327 and ask for a free copy of the
brochure, "That Others May Hear." It
answers the most commonly asked
questions about temporal bone donation.

TINNITUS
SEMINAR

The American Tinnitus Association
(ATA) will be host for the Fifth
International Tinnitus Seminar in
Portland, Ore. The meeting, to be held
July 12-15 at the Marriott Hotel, will be
open to the public.

Scientific sessions will address causes of
tinnitus, its mechanisms, assessment,
etiology, drug therapies, alternative
treatments, psychological aspects, animal
research models, objective measurement,
instrumentation, and clinical evaluation.
ATA is seeking research papers from
scientists for possible inclusion in
seminar sessions or as poster
presentations, a news release said.

For registration and paper submissions,
write to the American Tinnitus
Association, P.O. Box 5, Portland, OR
97207-0005, or call (503) 248-9985, or fax
(503) 248-0024.