ABBOTT HELPS PEOPLE WITH VERTIGO TAKE CONTROL OF THEIR HEALTH WITH THE LAUNCH OF AN EASY-TO-USE ‘VERTIGO COACH’ APP IN INDIA

• User-friendly, solution that offers comprehensive information on vertigo management to people living with it, at their fingertips, at any time they may need it
• Helps people stay on track and manage vertigo with helpful pill reminders, lifestyle tips, and videos of specially designed exercises that can help one train their vestibular system (a sensory system that creates the sense of balance and movement of our head in space)
• The Vertigo Coach app can help the 9.9 million people in India who live with vertigo in adopting holistic lifestyle changes to better manage their condition
  

MUMBAI, India, August 24, 2023 – Abbott has launched the ‘Vertigo Coach’ app in India, a digital health solution to help people with vertigo get the information and resources they need to manage their condition holistically, at any time of the day. It will act as a companion to people living with vertigo, helping them manage their condition by empowering them with tips on lifestyle choices and exercise. The app can be downloaded on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

The Vertigo Coach app will serve as a one-stop platform offering information about symptoms, common vertigo triggers, and how to manage vertigo episodes. By providing information about symptoms and ways to manage vertigo episodes, the app can further improve meaningful interactions between patients and their physicians. Additionally, it helps people stay on top of their treatment plan by helping users keep track of their medicines and avoid inadvertently missing a dose by scheduling a time to take pills daily. Automated push notifications and pill reminders make taking medication on-time hassle-free. 

Vivek V Kamath, Managing Director, Abbott India Limited, said, “Vertigo, is a disorienting condition that can be effectively managed with appropriate steps. It’s important to help people understand it fully and simplify their journey to better health. With our user-friendly app, we hope people living with vertigo feel empowered with the information they may need to keep the condition under control. We are committed to helping people with vertigo make any necessary lifestyle changes and stick to their treatment better with such comprehensive digital solutions. This can help them move forward in life with confidence.”

Over 9.9 million people in India live with vertigo, a balance disorder that results in a sudden, unpleasant sensation that makes people feel like the world is spinning around.[i] Although similar in some ways, vertigo and regular dizziness are not the same.[ii] Dizziness makes you feel off-balance or lightheaded, while vertigo creates the false feeling that your surroundings are moving or spinning. This “spinning sensation” can be extreme and affects a person’s balance.[iii]^,[iv]

An episode of vertigo can last from a few seconds to a few hours, or even a few days. A vertigo episode can happen at any age, but it is more commonly observed in the elderly, with about 30% of people over 60 years of age and 50% over 85 years of age experiencing vertigo and dizziness.[v][vi] Women are two to three times more likely to experience them than men.[vii]^,[viii] Fortunately, there are ways to effectively manage vertigo. This involves a holistic approach with physical therapy, medication in consultation with one’s doctor, psychotherapy, and lifestyle changes.

Experiencing vertigo can be disturbing and disabling.¹ It can affect all aspects of a person’s life and yet many people suffering from it, and their families, do not recognize it.¹ Vertigo may be dismissed as just a moment of ‘dizziness’.² Getting people to recognize the signs of vertigo, so its cause can be accurately diagnosed, is imperative.^1,4 Vertigo episodes are treatable, so seeking proper care can help people get back to the lifestyle they enjoy.⁴  The Vertigo Coach App will be a key step in assisting patients and healthcare practitioners adopt holistic measures to relieve symptoms and improve overall well-being.

People with vertigo may feel a loss of control, especially when the condition affects many aspects of their lives. But this condition is manageable and Abbott’s Vertigo Coach app has a host of essential information and advice about vertigo all available in one place. Talk to your doctor for more information on the app.

About Abbott:

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 115,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

In India, Abbott was established in 1910, and is one of the country's oldest and most admired healthcare companies. With more than 12,000 employees in the country, Abbott is helping to meet the healthcare needs of consumers, patients and doctors throughout urban and rural India.

Connect with us at www.abbott.com and www.abbott.in, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and www.facebook.com/AbbottIndia, and on Twitter @AbbottNews.

Abbott Media:

Mandira Viegas: mandira.viegas@abbott.com
Gayatri Mehendale: gayatri.mehendale@abbott.com

References

¹ Saha S, Haldar A, Mondal H. Evaluation of Types of Vertigo With Electronystagmography: An Experience From a Tertiary Care Hospital in West Bengal, India. Cureus. 2023 Feb 26;15(2):e35496.

² NHS. Vertigo. Published 2022. Accessed February 22, 2022. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vertigo/.

³ Bösner S, Schwarm S, Grevenrath P, et al. Prevalence, aetiologies and prognosis of the symptom dizziness in primary care - a systematic review. BMC Fam Pract. 2018;19(1):33. Published 2018 Feb 20. doi:10.1186/s12875-017-0695-0.

⁴ NICE. Vertigo – Summary. Revised November 2020. Accessed February 22, 2022. https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/vertigo/

⁵ Adrion C, Fischer CS, Wagner J, et al. Efficacy and safety of betahistine treatment in patients with Meniere's disease: primary results of a long term, multicentre, double blind, randomised, placebo controlled, dose defining trial (BEMED trial). BMJ. 2016;352:h6816. Published 2016 Jan 21. doi:10.1136/bmj.h6816.

⁶ Fernández L, Breinbauer HA, Delano PH. Vertigo and Dizziness in the Elderly. Front Neurol. 2015;6:144. Published 2015 Jun 26. doi:10.3389/fneur.2015.00144.

⁷ Neuhauser HK. The epidemiology of dizziness and vertigo. Handb Clin Neurol. 2016;137:67-82. doi:10.1016/B978-0-444-63437-5.00005-4

⁸ Murdin L, Schilder AG. Epidemiology of balance symptoms and disorders in the community: a systematic review. Otol Neurotol. 2015;36(3):387-392. doi:10.1097/MAO.0000000000000691.