Dizziness is a sensation of light-headedness or feeling faint
Call or Return If
After 2 hours of rest and fluids, still feeling dizzy
Mild dizziness lasts over 3 days
Your child passes out (faints)
You think your child needs to be seen
Your child becomes worse
About This Topic
Symptoms
Feeling dizzy or light headed
Feeling unsteady with slight loss of balance
Feeling "woozy" or not thinking clearly
May also have brief blurring of vision
Causes
Dizziness is usually due to transient reduced blood flow to the brain. It can be triggered by many normal events:
Standing too long in one place. Reason: causes pooling of blood in the legs.
Standing up suddenly. Reason: causes sudden drop in blood pressure
Not drinking enough fluid. Reason: causes mild dehydration
Running and out of breath. Reason: transient reduced oxygen levels can't meet body's needs
Excessive sun or hot tub exposure. Reason: increased sweating.
Sports or hard work. Reason: causes sweating and fluid loss
Skipping a meal. Reason: low blood sugar.
Fevers
Motion sickness. Main symptoms are dizziness and nausea.
Viral syndrome. Patients with viral illnesses (e.g., colds, flu) often report some dizziness. This is never the only symptom. It may relate to weakness from being sick.
Serious Cause: Vertigo. In addition to dizziness, the child complains that the room is spinning. They can't walk if they have vertigo. True vertigo is very rare in children. It's usually caused by middle ear disease.
Dizziness Scale
Mild:
walks normal
Moderate:
interferes with normal activities such as playing, school or sports
Severe:
can't stand, needs support to walk, feels like passing out now
After Care Advice
Overview:
Dizziness that goes away is a harmless symptom.
It's usually due to not drinking enough water during sports or hot weather.
It can also be caused by skipping a meal or too much sun.
Sometimes, it's part of a viral illness.
Here is some care advice that should help.
Rest:
Lie down with feet up for 1 hour. This will increase blood flow to the brain.
Fluids:
Drink several glasses of fruit juice, other clear fluids or water. This will improve your child's fluid status and blood sugar.
If the weather is hot, make sure the fluids are cold.
Cool Off:
If the weather is hot, use a cold pack or washcloth to the forehead.
Taking a cool shower or bath will help even more.
Prevention:
Extra water and salty foods during exercise or hot weather
Regular mealtimes and snacks
Enough sleep and rest
What to Expect:
With treatment, the dizziness usually goes away in 1 to 2 hours.
Mild dizziness with a viral illness may last 1 or 2 days.
