THE CAUSES OF MENIERE'S DISEASE
The cause of Meniere's Disease is unknown, but many factors are involved in the development of this disease.
The most prevalent opinion is that Meniere's Disease is as a result of fluctuating pressure of the fluid within the inner ear, known as the labyrinth.
Our balance and sense of position (laying down, standing upright or sitting down) is governed by these fluid-filled canals (bony labyrinth and the membranous labyrinth). When your head moves, endolymph (fluid that fills the canals) moves, causing nerve receptors in the membranous labyrinth in the inner ear to send signals to the brain about the body's motion. When the pressure increases, this membrane can become dilated like a balloon, this is called “hydrops”. This can happen when the drainage system (endolymphatic duct or sac) becomes blocked due to scar tissue, it may also be narrow from birth or there may be too much fluid secreted by the stria vascularis (Epithelium producing the endolymph in the cochlea).
Many experts on Ménière's Disease think that a rupture of the membranous labyrinth allows the endolymph fluid to mix with the perilymph fluids (found in the spaces between the membranous labyrinth and the bony inner ear). This mixing of these two fluids is believed by scientists to cause the symptoms of Ménière's Disease. Scientists are investigating several possible causes of the disease including:
- Increased pressure of the fluid in the inner ear (endolymphatic sac)
- Allergies that damage the inner ear
- Viral infections
- Vascular factors
- Autoimmune reaction
- Migraine
- Environmental factors
- Biological factors
- Unknown factors
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