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Lightheadedness

MedGen UID:
65105
•Concept ID:
C0220870
•
Sign or Symptom
Synonyms: Light Headedness; Light-Headedness
SNOMED CT: Lightheadedness (386705008); Light-headedness (386705008); Feels light headed (386705008); Lightheaded (386705008); Dizziness - light-headed (386705008); Wooziness (386705008)

Definition

A feeling of faintness; a reeling sensation. Lightheadedness is medically distinct from dizziness, unsteadiness, and vertigo. [from NCI]

Term Hierarchy

CClinical test,  RResearch test,  OOMIM,  GGeneReviews,  VClinVar  
  • CROGVLightheadedness

Professional guidelines

PubMed

Essential thrombocythemia: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk stratification, and management.
Tefferi A, Vannucchi AM, Barbui T
Am J Hematol 2024 Apr;99(4):697-718. Epub 2024 Jan 25 doi: 10.1002/ajh.27216. PMID: 38269572
Management of Orthostatic Hypotension in Parkinson's Disease.
Fanciulli A, Leys F, Falup-Pecurariu C, Thijs R, Wenning GK
J Parkinsons Dis 2020;10(s1):S57-S64. doi: 10.3233/JPD-202036. PMID: 32716319Free PMC Article
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Adults: Evaluation and Management.
Wilkins T, Wheeler B, Carpenter M
Am Fam Physician 2020 Mar 1;101(5):294-300. PMID: 32109037

Recent clinical studies

Etiology

Essential thrombocythemia: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk stratification, and management.
Tefferi A, Vannucchi AM, Barbui T
Am J Hematol 2024 Apr;99(4):697-718. Epub 2024 Jan 25 doi: 10.1002/ajh.27216. PMID: 38269572
Orthostatic Hypotension: A Practical Approach.
Kim MJ, Farrell J
Am Fam Physician 2022 Jan 1;105(1):39-49. PMID: 35029940
Management of Orthostatic Hypotension in Parkinson's Disease.
Fanciulli A, Leys F, Falup-Pecurariu C, Thijs R, Wenning GK
J Parkinsons Dis 2020;10(s1):S57-S64. doi: 10.3233/JPD-202036. PMID: 32716319Free PMC Article
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Adults: Evaluation and Management.
Wilkins T, Wheeler B, Carpenter M
Am Fam Physician 2020 Mar 1;101(5):294-300. PMID: 32109037
Gepirone hydrochloride: a novel antidepressant with 5-HT1A agonistic properties.
Kaur Gill A, Bansal Y, Bhandari R, Kaur S, Kaur J, Singh R, Kuhad A, Kuhad A
Drugs Today (Barc) 2019 Jul;55(7):423-437. doi: 10.1358/dot.2019.55.7.2958474. PMID: 31347611

Diagnosis

Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS): An Update for Clinical Practice.
Sebastian SA, Co EL, Panthangi V, Jain E, Ishak A, Shah Y, Vasavada A, Padda I
Curr Probl Cardiol 2022 Dec;47(12):101384. Epub 2022 Aug 31 doi: 10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2022.101384. PMID: 36055438
Case 309.
Puac-Polanco P, Zakhari N, Jansen GH, Torres C
Radiology 2022 Sep;304(3):732-735. doi: 10.1148/radiol.211953. PMID: 35994397
Sinus Node Dysfunction.
Hawks MK, Paul MLB, Malu OO
Am Fam Physician 2021 Aug 1;104(2):179-185. PMID: 34383451
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Adults: Evaluation and Management.
Wilkins T, Wheeler B, Carpenter M
Am Fam Physician 2020 Mar 1;101(5):294-300. PMID: 32109037
Dizziness: Approach to Evaluation and Management.
Muncie HL, Sirmans SM, James E
Am Fam Physician 2017 Feb 1;95(3):154-162. PMID: 28145669

Therapy

Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS): An Update for Clinical Practice.
Sebastian SA, Co EL, Panthangi V, Jain E, Ishak A, Shah Y, Vasavada A, Padda I
Curr Probl Cardiol 2022 Dec;47(12):101384. Epub 2022 Aug 31 doi: 10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2022.101384. PMID: 36055438
Patient-centred approaches for the management of unpleasant symptoms in kidney disease.
Kalantar-Zadeh K, Lockwood MB, Rhee CM, Tantisattamo E, Andreoli S, Balducci A, Laffin P, Harris T, Knight R, Kumaraswami L, Liakopoulos V, Lui SF, Kumar S, Ng M, Saadi G, Ulasi I, Tong A, Li PK
Nat Rev Nephrol 2022 Mar;18(3):185-198. Epub 2022 Jan 3 doi: 10.1038/s41581-021-00518-z. PMID: 34980890
Safety of low-dose oral minoxidil for hair loss: A multicenter study of 1404 patients.
Vañó-Galván S, Pirmez R, Hermosa-Gelbard A, Moreno-Arrones ÓM, Saceda-Corralo D, Rodrigues-Barata R, Jimenez-Cauhe J, Koh WL, Poa JE, Jerjen R, Trindade de Carvalho L, John JM, Salas-Callo CI, Vincenzi C, Yin L, Lo-Sicco K, Waskiel-Burnat A, Starace M, Zamorano JL, Jaén-Olasolo P, Piraccini BM, Rudnicka L, Shapiro J, Tosti A, Sinclair R, Bhoyrul B
J Am Acad Dermatol 2021 Jun;84(6):1644-1651. Epub 2021 Feb 24 doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2021.02.054. PMID: 33639244
Idiopathic anaphylaxis.
Guo C, Greenberger PA
Allergy Asthma Proc 2019 Nov 1;40(6):457-461. doi: 10.2500/aap.2019.40.4271. PMID: 31690394
Gepirone hydrochloride: a novel antidepressant with 5-HT1A agonistic properties.
Kaur Gill A, Bansal Y, Bhandari R, Kaur S, Kaur J, Singh R, Kuhad A, Kuhad A
Drugs Today (Barc) 2019 Jul;55(7):423-437. doi: 10.1358/dot.2019.55.7.2958474. PMID: 31347611

Prognosis

Essential thrombocythemia: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk stratification, and management.
Tefferi A, Vannucchi AM, Barbui T
Am J Hematol 2024 Apr;99(4):697-718. Epub 2024 Jan 25 doi: 10.1002/ajh.27216. PMID: 38269572
Sinus Node Dysfunction.
Hawks MK, Paul MLB, Malu OO
Am Fam Physician 2021 Aug 1;104(2):179-185. PMID: 34383451
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Adults: Evaluation and Management.
Wilkins T, Wheeler B, Carpenter M
Am Fam Physician 2020 Mar 1;101(5):294-300. PMID: 32109037
Postural tachycardia syndrome: current perspectives.
Wells R, Spurrier AJ, Linz D, Gallagher C, Mahajan R, Sanders P, Page A, Lau DH
Vasc Health Risk Manag 2018;14:1-11. Epub 2017 Dec 29 doi: 10.2147/VHRM.S127393. PMID: 29343965Free PMC Article
Manifestations of Lyme carditis.
Kostić T, Momčilović S, Perišić ZD, Apostolović SR, Cvetković J, Jovanović A, Barać A, Šalinger-Martinović S, Tasić-Otašević S
Int J Cardiol 2017 Apr 1;232:24-32. Epub 2016 Dec 27 doi: 10.1016/j.ijcard.2016.12.169. PMID: 28082088

Clinical prediction guides

Sinus Node Dysfunction.
Hawks MK, Paul MLB, Malu OO
Am Fam Physician 2021 Aug 1;104(2):179-185. PMID: 34383451
Episodic Spontaneous Dizziness.
Eggers SDZ
Continuum (Minneap Minn) 2021 Apr 1;27(2):369-401. doi: 10.1212/CON.0000000000000931. PMID: 34351111
Safety of low-dose oral minoxidil for hair loss: A multicenter study of 1404 patients.
Vañó-Galván S, Pirmez R, Hermosa-Gelbard A, Moreno-Arrones ÓM, Saceda-Corralo D, Rodrigues-Barata R, Jimenez-Cauhe J, Koh WL, Poa JE, Jerjen R, Trindade de Carvalho L, John JM, Salas-Callo CI, Vincenzi C, Yin L, Lo-Sicco K, Waskiel-Burnat A, Starace M, Zamorano JL, Jaén-Olasolo P, Piraccini BM, Rudnicka L, Shapiro J, Tosti A, Sinclair R, Bhoyrul B
J Am Acad Dermatol 2021 Jun;84(6):1644-1651. Epub 2021 Feb 24 doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2021.02.054. PMID: 33639244
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Adults: Evaluation and Management.
Wilkins T, Wheeler B, Carpenter M
Am Fam Physician 2020 Mar 1;101(5):294-300. PMID: 32109037
Gepirone hydrochloride: a novel antidepressant with 5-HT1A agonistic properties.
Kaur Gill A, Bansal Y, Bhandari R, Kaur S, Kaur J, Singh R, Kuhad A, Kuhad A
Drugs Today (Barc) 2019 Jul;55(7):423-437. doi: 10.1358/dot.2019.55.7.2958474. PMID: 31347611

Recent systematic reviews

Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome After COVID-19: A Systematic Review of Therapeutic Interventions.
Abbate G, De Iulio B, Thomas G, Priday A, Biondi-Zoccai G, Markley R, Abbate A
J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 2023 Jul 1;82(1):23-31. doi: 10.1097/FJC.0000000000001432. PMID: 37094584
The association of panic and hyperventilation with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Indranada AM, Mullen SA, Duncan R, Berlowitz DJ, Kanaan RAA
Seizure 2018 Jul;59:108-115. Epub 2018 May 19 doi: 10.1016/j.seizure.2018.05.007. PMID: 29787922
Oxycodone for cancer-related pain.
Schmidt-Hansen M, Bennett MI, Arnold S, Bromham N, Hilgart JS
Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2017 Aug 22;8(8):CD003870. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003870.pub6. PMID: 28829910Free PMC Article
Exercise-based rehabilitation programmes for pulmonary hypertension.
Morris NR, Kermeen FD, Holland AE
Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2017 Jan 19;1(1):CD011285. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011285.pub2. PMID: 28099988Free PMC Article
Is there a link between dizziness and vision? A systematic review.
Armstrong D, Charlesworth E, Alderson AJ, Elliott DB
Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2016 Jul;36(4):477-86. Epub 2016 Jun 2 doi: 10.1111/opo.12299. PMID: 27255594

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