Dizziness and loss of concentration

My good fiend sometimes has problems while driving.  For no reason, she suddenly feels a lost of concentration, blurred and her eyes can't open and feels like she is floating.  It is scarry as this has only happened when she has been driving.  Even with other passengers talking to her, there have been times when she has felt this and has pulled over for a few minutes.  What do you think is the probblem?

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

Important causes of dizziness include hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) or hypotension (low blood pressure) .Pls get yourself evaluated for that.

Sometimes lack of proper sleep or taking stress can also lead to dizziness. Sometimes, there are partial or complete blockages in the arteries that supply the brain with blood.  These blockages can cause a temporary loss of blood flow (called transient ischemic attack, or TIA for short), or permanent loss of blood flow (called stroke; also called cerebrovascular accident).This can lead to impaired blood flow through these arteries and so dizziness. In such cases CT brain can be useful.

Dizziness can be due to orthostatic hypotension(low BP)also. Sometimses drugs like antihypertensivs, nitroglycerin and diuretics can lead to dizziness as their side effects.Pls check them out.

Ask your friend to get herself examined by an eye specialist too as dizziness can also be caused by refractory changes and changes in the power of accommodation of the eyes. Ear infections and other causes like Meniere’s disease or inner ear diseases can also lead to dizziness.

Pls ask your friend to get herself properly evaluated and then only drive as dizziness and driving can be a serious combination.

Take care and God bless.