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Category	Prescription Drug	Strength	Quantity	Cost
Motion and Sea Sickness	Antivert Transderm Scop	12.5 mg 1.5 mg	30 pills 4 patches	$54 $72

Antivert (pills for vertigo and sea sickness)

Antivert is an antihistamine. It blocks the effects of the naturally occurring histamine in your body. Antivert is used to treat nausea, vomiting and dizziness associated with motion sickness and for vertigo.

Transderm Scop (patches for motion and sea sickness)

Transderm Scop patches are used to relieve nausea, vomiting and dizziness associated with motion sickness. It is an anticholinergic which decreases the secretion of fluids, slows the intestine and dilates the pupils.

Motion sickness occurs when the body is subjected to accelerations of movement in different directions or under conditions where visual contact with the actual outside horizon is lost. The balance center of the inner ear then sends information to the brain that conflicts with the visual clues of apparently standing still in the interior cabin of a ship or airplane. Symptoms generally consist of dizziness, fatigue, and nausea which may progress to vomiting. From one third to one half of airline passengers will experience some degree of motion sickness when encountering heavy turbulance, and it has been found that fear or anxiety can promote symptoms. Some individuals seem to be naturally prone to motion sickness since childhood.

Prevention is best accomplished by seeking areas of lesser movement in an interior location of a large ship or by facing forward and looking outside a ship or plane. Several medications are now available both by prescription and over the counter that may prevent or limit the symptoms of motion sickness. If medications are necessary, they are best taken at least one hour before embarking.

The over-the-counter medications Dramamine or Bonine can be very effective for short trips or when symptoms occurr intermittently. For longer trips, a prescription medication called Transderm-Scop comes in the form of a patch can be worn behind the ear for up to three days at a time. Side effects of these medications usually consist of sedation and dry mouth and they should not be taken by people who have glaucoma or urinary obstruction. Recent studies have shown that ginger root may be as effective as the other drug treatments and is associated with fewer side effects.

It is hard to define dizziness, since feeling dizzy is such a subjective experience. Some people describe it as a sensation of light-headedness or feeling faint, while others say it feels like they are suddenly unsteady (as if the floor is moving beneath their feet). Vertigo is described in similar ways. Generally, vertigo feels like you are rotating in circles when, in fact, you are standing still. It is similar to the way you feel when spinning on a playground roundabout. Alternatively, vertigo has been described as the sensation of standing still within a spinning room. Since the definitions of dizziness and vertigo are so vague, and because many of the symptoms overlap, it is helpful to group the terms together. Dizziness and vertigo can be caused by a wide range of factors, including underlying disorders such as infection or low blood pressure.

The general symptoms of dizziness can include:

Light-headedness, feeling faint or unsteadiness
A false sensation of movement, either of the self or the external environment
Confusion and nausea.

Additional symptoms that may suggest an underlying medical condition include:

Unusual eye movements, such as flitting of the eyes (nystagmus)
Headache or vomiting
Ringing sound in the ears (tinnitus)
Speech difficulties, such as slurring
Deafness and muscular weakness
Staggering gait and loss of coordination (ataxia)
Loss of consciousness.

Inside the inner ear is a series of canals filled with fluid. These canals are at different angles. When the head is moved, the rolling of the fluid inside these canals tells the brain exactly how far, how fast and in what direction the head is moving. Information from these canals is passed along to the brain via the vestibular nerve, which lies next to the cochlear nerve. If the brain knows the position of the head, it can work out the position of the rest of the body. Generally, most cases of dizziness are caused by problems of the inner ear, brain, or nerves that connect the inner ear to the brain.

A wide range of conditions and diseases can cause dizziness, including:

Inner ear problems - disorders of the inner ear account for about half of all cases of persistent dizziness. Disorders include Meniere's disease, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, vestibular neuritis, labyrinthitis and acoustic neuroma.
Anxiety - about 15% of dizziness cases are caused by anxiety disorders, including panic attacks and phobias.
Brain problems - brain disorders account for about 5% of dizziness cases. Disorders include stroke, migraine, Parkinson's disease, brain tumour and multiple sclerosis.
Medical conditions - about 5% of dizziness cases are caused by underlying medical conditions such as low blood pressure, infection, hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) and some heart problems (such as cardiac arrhythmia). Drugs that are used to treat conditions such as epilepsy, coronary heart disease and hypertension can also cause dizziness.
Other factors - other factors that may cause dizziness include motion sickness, marijuana use, withdrawing from alcohol, fibromyalgia and getting too hot in a stuffy room.
Unknown causes - in about a quarter of cases, a cause isn't found.

Treatment depends on the cause. For example, bacterial infections of the inner ear are treated with antibiotics, while anxiety disorders respond well to counselling and cognitive behaviour therapy. In cases where a cause can't be found, treatment options may include:

Bed rest and medications to dampen the sensations of dizziness.
Anti-nausea medications like Antivert or Transderm Scop.
Regularly performed balancing exercises to 'retrain' the nervous system.
The Canalith procedure, which is a special set of head postures designed to move the particles inside the ear.

Disclaimer

This drug information is for your information purposes only. It is not intended that this information covers all uses, directions, drug interactions, precautions, or adverse effects of your medication. This is only general information, and should not be relied on for any purpose. It should not be construed as containing specific instructions for any particular patient. We disclaim all responsibility for the accuracy and reliability of this information, and/or any consequences arising from the use of this information, including damage or adverse consequences to persons or property, however such damages or consequences arise. No warranty, either expressed or implied, is made in regards to this information.