When a patient says ‘estoy mareado,’ I avoid guessing and ask, ‘¿Siente que todo gira o que se va a desmayar?’ I render that as ‘Is the room spinning or do you feel faint?’ - a tiny clarification that keeps me accurate and ethical and has changed the plan more than once. How do you handle it?
But i add the trigger: “¿Le pasa al levantarse o al girar la cabeza?” and render it “Does it happen when you stand up or when you turn your head?” — that split often flags presyncope vs BPPV and changes next steps… Do you also ask how long each episode lasts?
I add duration: I ask ‘¿Le dura segundos, minutos u horas?’ and render ‘Does it last seconds, minutes, or hours?’ That often separates brief positional vertigo from all-day lightheadedness, but I only offer it if the provider hasn’t already gone there. Do you ever add onset — ‘¿Empezó de repente o poco a poco?’.
I’ll add a quick ear check: “¿Tiene zumbido o pérdida de audición?” and render “Any ringing in the ears or hearing loss?” It’s helped me separate Ménière’s from generic vertigo a few times; if it’s rapid triage I skip it unless they mention ear fullness.
, “mareado” is such a grab bag. After your “spinning vs faint” split, I add one more branch: “¿Se siente inestable al caminar?” → “Do you feel unsteady on your feet?”, which has flagged cerebellar stuff a couple times; I only ask it if the provider hasn’t already covered it. @emma9773 have you found a better phrasing that patients get right away?
Right after your ‘Is the room spinning or do you feel faint?’ I add triggers: ‘¿Empieza al levantarse o al girar la cabeza?’ That cleanly splits orthostatic lightheadedness from BPPV and keeps me from overcalling vertigo; if it’s on standing I flag meds/fluids before anything fancy.
Duration next: I ask ‘¿Cuánto dura cada episodio: segundos, minutos o horas?’ and render ‘How long does each episode last — seconds, minutes, or hours?’ That quick timestamp often separates brief positional vertigo from hours-long vestibular stuff and keeps your tiny clarification from doing all the heavy lifting.
I tack on an ear check: “¿Zumbido o pérdida de audición?” → “Any ringing or hearing loss?” After your “Is the room spinning or do you feel faint?” that tiny add-on has steered plans toward Ménière’s more than once, and @greg88, I’m curious if you fold ear fullness into it.
Quick add for “estoy mareado”: I check vision — “¿Se le nubla la vista o ve doble?” — and render it “Is your vision blurry or double?” @mark85, do you fold vision into your first pass or save it for later? It’s caught diplopia for me and shifted the plan toward neuro more than once.