An 88-year-old female is accompanied by her daughter to the emergency department.The daughter explains that her mother was having her hair washed at the beauty salon,then complained of dizziness and fainted.The 88-year-old patient has a history of hypertension for which she takes a beta blocker.Otherwise she was in her usual state of health until this incident.On examination,she has no neurological deficits.Which of the following conditions should be considered?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Given the patient's age, history of hypertension, and sudden onset of symptoms, vertebrobasilar insufficiency (VBI) should be considered. VBI occurs due to decreased blood flow to the posterior circulation of the brain and can result in dizziness and syncope. It is important to rule out more serious causes of syncope, such as stroke or cardiac arrest. Benign positional vertigo, labyrinthitis, and dehydration would not be the most likely causes of syncope in this patient.

An 88-Year-Old Female Is Accompanied by Her Daughter to the Emergency