Collecting Vestibular Dysfunction Disability Benefits Is A Reality

Disability insurance carriers often challenge a diagnosis of vestibular dysfunction. How Can Disability Insurance Attorneys Dell & Schaefer Assist You?

As disability attorneys, Dell & Schaefer have represented long term disability claimants that have been unable to work as a result of vestibular dysfunction. Disability Attorneys Dell & Schaefer have an expansive understanding of the significant restrictions and limitations that a person suffering with vestibular dysfunction must live with on a daily basis. We have worked closely with top physicians in order to sufficiently satisfy a disability carrier’s threshold of evidence necessary to prove that a client is disabled by a vestibular dysfunction.

Not everyone suffering from a vestibular dysfunction qualifies for long-term disability benefits, therefore the medical records of each client must be reviewed to determine the level of restrictions. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your long-term disability claim. You can contact us for a free initial consultation.

What is vestibular dysfunction?

To understand vestibular dysfunction we must first understand our vestibular system. Our vestibular system works with other sensorimotor systems in the body, such as our visual system (eyes) and skeletal system (bones and joints), to check and maintain the position of our body at rest or in motion. It also helps us maintain a steady focus on objects even though the position of our body changes. The vestibular system does this by detecting mechanical forces, including gravity, that act upon our vestibular organs when we move.

The organ of balance in your inner ear is the vestibular labyrinth. It includes loop-shaped structures (semicircular canals) that contain fluid and fine, hair-like sensors that monitor the rotation of your head. Near the semicircular canals are the utricle and saccule, which contain tiny particles called otoconia (o-toe-KOE-nee-uh). These particles are attached to sensors that help detect gravity and back-and-forth motion.

vestibular dysfunction disability benefits claim

Good balance depends on at least two of these three sensory systems working well. However, if your central nervous system can’t process signals from all of these locations, if the messages are contradictory or if the sensory systems aren’t functioning properly, you may experience loss of balance.

How the symptoms of to vestibular dysfunction can affect you

Vestibular disorders may cause dizziness, vertigo, fainting and imbalance. They can also affect a person’s vision, hearing and impair cognitive abilities. While there are over a dozen different balance disorders related to vestibular dysfunction, we will look at some of the most common disorders below.

  • Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) or positional vertigo is a brief, intense episode of vertigo that occurs because of a specific change in the position of the head. If you have BPPV, you might feel as if you’re spinning when you look for an object on a high or low shelf or turn your head to look over your shoulder (such as when you back up your car). You also may experience BPPV when you roll over in bed. BPPV is caused when otoconia tumble from the utricle into one of the semicircular canals and weigh on the cupula. The cupula can’t tilt properly and sends conflicting messages to the brain about the position of the head, causing vertigo. BPPV sometimes may result from a head injury or simply from aging.
  • Labyrinthitis is an infection or inflammation of the inner ear that causes dizziness and loss of balance. It frequently is associated with an upper respiratory infection such as the flu.
  • Meniere’s disease is associated with a change in fluid volume within parts of the labyrinth. Meniere’s disease causes episodes of vertigo, irregular hearing loss, tinnitus (a ringing or buzzing in the ear), and a feeling of fullness in the ear. The cause of this disease is unknown.
  • Vestibular neuronitis is an inflammation of the vestibular nerve and may be caused by a virus. Its primary symptom is vertigo.
  • Perilymph fistula is a leakage of inner ear fluid into the middle ear. It can occur after a head injury, drastic changes in atmospheric pressure (such as when scuba diving), physical exertion, ear surgery, or chronic ear infections. Its most notable symptom, besides dizziness and nausea, is unsteadiness when walking or standing that increases with activity and decreases with rest. Some babies may be born with perilymph fistula, usually in association with hearing loss that is present at birth.
  • Mal de debarquement syndrome (MdDS) is a balance disorder in which you feel as if you’re continuously rocking or bobbing. It generally happens after an ocean cruise or other sea travel. Usually, the symptoms will go away in a matter of hours or days after you reach land. However, severe cases can last months or even years.

People with vestibular dysfunction may experience profound impacts on their health, family, social and professional life due to the restrictions a vestibular disorder causes.

Vestibular rehabilitation may be effective in minimizing or relieving some of the symptoms, especially if the dizziness is caused by head movement, motion sensitivity, or certain positions. When rehabilitation isn’t successful in controlling vertigo and other symptoms caused by vestibular system dysfunction, surgery may be a viable option.

Surgical procedures for peripheral vestibular disorders are either corrective or destructive. The goal of corrective surgery is to repair or stabilize inner ear function. The goal of destructive surgery is to stop the production of sensory information or prevent its transmission from the inner ear to the brain.

Resources

There are many valuable sources of to vestibular dysfunction information available. You can also access resources over the internet such as:

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MetLife

MetLife for disability? Avoid the surgery unless it's life-threatening

Reviewed by Jeff on August 22nd 2024   Verified Policyholder | August 2024 date of disability
The worst company I ever dealt with, never received a call from my claim manager.
Reliance Standard

Short Term Disability Claim/Inconsistent to NO Communication

Reviewed by GaKRN on August 22nd 2024   Verified Policyholder | June 2024 date of disability
When I did call & reach a live person they were kind & helpful. The person assigned to my claim left one phone message & I have not spoken to her since. Information she re... read more >
Unum

Unum Closed My Case Today

Reviewed by Scott C. on July 5th 2024   Verified Policyholder | March 2023 date of disability
Unum will keep you around, if they pay you 100 a month. But as soon as have to pay more than 2700 a month, they will drop you. We will be going to the attorneys office fir... read more >
Hartford

Ran me Around for Months

Reviewed by David on July 5th 2024   Verified Policyholder | January 2024 date of disability
Scammers. Immoral horrible people.
Reply
Sent on July 5th 2024 by Attorney Gregory Dell

David:

It’s horrible that Hartford did that to you.

Prudential

Denied but Not Denied but I am Denied

Reviewed by KDDK on July 5th 2024   Verified Policyholder | August 2022 date of disability
I went out in Aug. 2022 for neck pain. After seeing a neurologist I had to get an ACDF C5-7, it was also determined I had carpal tunnel in my right hand and bulging disk i... read more >
New York Life

Claiming They Are Not Receiving Paperwork

Reviewed by Macey on June 26th 2024   Verified Policyholder | February 2024 date of disability
After suffering from medical issues from my delivery in February, I had to have a colostomy bag placed. Now New York Life is trying to claim my condition was pre-existing ... read more >
Hartford

Truly Horrible and Immoral Company with No Customer Service

Reviewed by William M. on June 26th 2024   Verified Policyholder | June 2020 date of disability
My experiences with Hartford have been nothing short of cruel. They started off by claiming that having Glioblastoma, which has an expected life span of about fifteen mont... read more >
Lincoln Financial

My STD claim with Lincoln Financial has been in medical review for a long time. I'm beginning to get worried.

Reviewed by Ally on November 9th 2015   Verified Policyholder
I applied for short term disability on September 28th. First they were waiting for medical records and after receiving those it went to medical review.It is November 10th ... read more >
Reply
Sent on November 9th 2015 by Attorney Stephen Jessup

Ally, if they have not rendered a decision by the end of day 45 please feel free to contact our office to discuss your claim.

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Who are Dell Disability Lawyers?

We are disability insurance attorneys that know how to get your short or long term disability benefits paid. As a nationwide law firm we have helped thousands of disability insurance claimants throughout the United States to collect hundreds of millions of dollars of disability insurance benefits from every major disability insurance company.

In more than 98% of our cases, our attorneys have been able to either get our clients paid monthly disability benefits or obtain a one-time lump-sum settlement. Our disability insurance lawyers have seen it all when it comes to disability insurance claims and we know exactly what it takes for your disability claim to be approved.

We offer disability insurance attorney representation nationwide and we welcome you to contact any of our lawyers for a free immediate review of your disability claim. We also invite you to visit and subscribe to our YouTube channel where we have more than 850 videos and regularly provide tips to help protect your disability benefits.

Who do you help?

Our disability insurance attorneys help individuals that have either purchased a long term disability insurance policy from an insurance company or obtained short or long term disability insurance coverage as a benefit from their employer. We have helped individuals in almost every type of occupation with monthly disability benefit payments ranging from $1,500 to $50,000.

Our clients include all types of employees ranging from retail associates, sales representatives, government employees, police officers, teachers, janitors, nurses, pilots, truck drivers, financial advisors, doctors, dentists, veterinarians, lawyers, consultants, IT professionals, engineers, professional athletes, business owners, and high level executives.

A strong understanding and presentation of the duties of your occupation is essential for securing disability insurance benefits.

Do you work in my state?

Yes. We are a national disability insurance law firm that is available to represent you regardless of where you live in the United States. We have partner lawyers in every state and we have filed lawsuits in most federal courts nationwide. Our disability insurance lawyers represent disability claimants at all stages of a claim for disability insurance benefits. There is nothing that our lawyers have not seen in the disability insurance world.

What are your fees?

Since we represent disability insurance claimants at different stages of a disability insurance claim we offer a variety of different fee options. We understand that claimants living on disability insurance benefits have a limited source of income; therefore we always try to work with the claimant to make our attorney fees as affordable as possible.

The three available fee options are a contingency fee agreement (no attorney fee or cost unless we make a recovery), hourly fee or fixed flat rate.

In every case we provide each client with a written fee agreement detailing the terms and conditions. We always offer a free initial phone consultation and we appreciate the opportunity to work with you in obtaining payment of your disability insurance benefits.

Do I have to come to your office to work with your law firm?

No. For purposes of efficiency and to reduce expenses for our clients we have found that 99% of our clients prefer to communicate via phone, email, fax, or video conferencing sessions. If you prefer an initial in-person meeting please let us know. A disability company will never require you to come to their office and similarly we are set up so that we handle your entire claim without the need for you to come to our office.

How can I contact you?

When you call us during normal business hours you will immediately speak with a disability insurance attorney. We can be reached at 800-698-9159 or by email. Lawyers and staff must return all client calls same day. Client emails are usually replied to within the same business day and seem to be the preferred and most efficient method of communication for most clients.

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