Apollo Hospitals convened a focused specialist workshop in Bengaluru to strengthen frontline clinical understanding and improve diagnostic accuracy in vertigo care.

The workshop brought together neurologists, ENT specialists and general physicians in a hands-on format that moved beyond theory.

Sessions focused on structured patient history-taking, bedside examination of vestibular and ocular motor systems, and systematic clinical pathways to identify the root cause of vertigo. Experts also guided participants on differentiating peripheral, central and functional vertigo, conditions that often present similarly but require distinctly different treatment approaches.

Dr. Suryanarayana Sharma PM, Senior Consultant Neurologist and Stroke Specialist, Academic Advisor, Department of Neurology, said that more than 70 million people in India are affected by vertigo, with nearly 74% of cases being benign. However, he stressed that recognising red flags and serious neurological or ENT causes remains critical, making a multidisciplinary team approach and dedicated vertigo clinics increasingly relevant.

Dr. Sunil Narayan Dutt, Senior Consultant and Clinical Advisor, Department of ENT, highlighted the need for hands-on learning models that help physicians build confidence in assessing vertigo patients, particularly in busy clinical settings where time and resources are often limited.

Adding an international perspective, renowned neurologist and vestibular expert Dr. Michael Strupp led key sessions on peripheral, central and functional vertigo. He emphasised that advances in vestibular medicine have made many vertigo conditions highly treatable, and that the key challenge now lies in ensuring early and precise diagnosis through structured clinical evaluation.

Experts also observed that vertigo is increasingly being recognised alongside broader neurological and post-viral conditions, adding complexity to diagnosis and reinforcing the importance of timely specialist-led intervention.

Despite its growing burden, vertigo is often dismissed as a minor ailment, leading to delays in diagnosis, prolonged discomfort and, in some cases, failure to detect serious neurological or ENT conditions. Against this backdrop, Apollo Hospitals designed the workshop as a practical, case-led initiative aimed at improving how vestibular disorders are identified and treated at the first point of care.