Diagnostic Errors in the Acutely Dizzy Patient-Lessons Learned.

ABSTRACT: Acute vertigo or dizziness is a frequent presentation to the emergency department (ED), making up between 2.1% and 4.4% of all consultations. Given the nature of the ED where the priority is triage, diagnostic delays and misdiagnoses are common, with as many as a third of vertebrobasilar strokes presenting with acute vertigo or dizziness being missed. Here, we review diagnostic errors identified in the evaluation and treatment of the acutely dizzy patient and discuss strategies to overcome them. Lessons learned include focusing on structured history taking, asking about timing and triggers to inform a targeted examination, assessing subtle ocular motor findings (e.g., by use of HINTS(+)), and avoiding overreliance on brain imaging (including early magnetic resonance imaging including diffu

SUBMITTER: Tarnutzer AA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11764146 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature