Dizziness is a broad term describing uncomfortable sensations, and it is a frequent reason people seek immediate medical attention. This feeling of unsteadiness is generally categorized into three experiences: lightheadedness, vertigo, and disequilibrium. Lightheadedness involves faintness or wooziness, often without the sensation of movement. Vertigo is the perception that you or your surroundings are spinning or whirling, while disequilibrium refers to a sense of unsteadiness or imbalance, particularly when walking. Understanding which sensation you are experiencing helps providers determine the cause and decide if urgent care is appropriate.
Triage: When Dizziness Requires Emergency Care
Deciding whether to visit urgent care or the emergency room (ER) hinges on the presence of specific, potentially life-threatening symptoms accompanying the dizziness. These “red flags” suggest a central neurological event, such as a stroke or brain hemorrhage, requiring immediate, high-level intervention and diagnostic tools unavailable at urgent care. If the dizziness is sudden and severe, or makes it impossible to stand or walk without assistance, the ER is the necessary choice.
A sudden, severe headache, often described as the “worst headache of your life,” demands emergency evaluation. Any new neurological symptoms alongside the dizziness also indicate a potential stroke and require immediate attention. These symptoms include slurred speech (dysarthria), double vision (diplopia), or new weakness or numbness in the face, arm, or leg.
Cardiovascular issues can manifest as dizziness, so chest pain, shortness of breath, or heart palpitations necessitate an ER visit. Loss of consciousness or fainting should also prompt an immediate trip to the emergency department. Individuals over 50 or those with a history of stroke or heart disease should have severe dizziness evaluated in the ER.
These severe presentations require advanced imaging, such as a CT scan or MRI, to rule out a central cause. Urgent care facilities are not equipped to perform this level of neuroimaging or manage the acute care required for conditions like a stroke or severe cardiac event. Delaying care by visiting urgent care first when these red flags are present can have serious consequences.
Common Causes Urgent Care Providers Diagnose
When dizziness is not accompanied by red flag symptoms, it is often due to causes within the scope of urgent care diagnosis and management. Conditions rooted in the inner ear or systemic factors are the most frequent causes evaluated. Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is a common cause of vertigo that urgent care providers treat, involving brief, intense spinning sensations triggered by specific head movements, such as rolling over in bed.
A common source of dizziness is a mild viral infection affecting the inner ear, known as vestibular neuritis or labyrinthitis. This inflammation disrupts the balance nerve or the entire labyrinth, causing persistent vertigo, unsteadiness, and sometimes hearing changes. Urgent care can manage the symptoms of these infections, which typically resolve with supportive care.
Non-ear-related causes are frequently metabolic or circulatory, stemming from fluid volume or blood sugar regulation issues. Mild dehydration, especially during warmer months, can lead to lightheadedness as the body struggles to maintain blood pressure. Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) is another systemic cause that can induce faintness and confusion, quickly identified with a finger-stick test.
Medication side effects, particularly from drugs used to treat high blood pressure or depression, are a frequent culprit. Urgent care providers can review recent changes in a patient’s prescription regimen and suggest adjusting or temporarily stopping the medication, or refer the patient back to their primary care physician for modification. They can also assess for orthostatic hypotension—a significant drop in blood pressure when moving from sitting or lying down to standing.
What to Expect During a Visit to Urgent Care
A visit to urgent care for dizziness begins with a comprehensive intake process, including checking vital signs like heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation. The provider takes a detailed medical history, focusing on the quality of the dizziness, its onset, and any recent illnesses, injuries, or new medications. This history is followed by a physical examination that includes neurological checks, specifically looking at eye movements and coordination.
The Dix-Hallpike maneuver is a diagnostic procedure performed in urgent care and is considered the gold standard for diagnosing BPPV. During this maneuver, the provider quickly moves the patient from a seated position to a lying position with the head turned and extended. The provider observes the patient’s eyes for nystagmus—an involuntary movement that confirms BPPV.
The urgent care provider may conduct simple tests to rule out systemic causes. These include orthostatic blood pressure checks, where blood pressure is measured while lying down, sitting, and standing to check for a significant drop indicating volume issues. A quick blood glucose test can also be performed to eliminate low blood sugar.
If BPPV is confirmed, the provider can administer immediate treatment, such as the Epley maneuver, which repositions the inner ear crystals and provides instant relief. For dehydration, intravenous fluids may be administered. Anti-nausea or anti-vertigo medications can be given to manage severe symptoms of labyrinthitis. If the cause remains unclear or suggests a complex issue, the provider will stabilize the patient and provide instructions for specialist follow-up or transfer to a higher level of care.