Background: Meniere's disease is a medical condition that involves hea
ring loss, tinnitus and attacks of vertigo. The attacks can be severel
y disabling with nausea, dizziness, and aural sensations. Method: Thre
e scales assessing the correlates of vertigo attacks in Meniere's dise
ase were developed and completed by 514 subjects diagnosed with the di
sease. The three scales measured were somatic sensations (SOM), psycho
logical state (PSYCHOL), and situational characteristics (SIT) associa
ted with an attack. Results: Psychometric properties of the three scal
es were investigated showing Cronbach's alphas of 0.76, 0.80, and 0.62
for the three scales respectively. The results on the scales were rel
ated to disease progression. Principal components factor analyses show
ed that the SOM scale could be divided into two subscales: dizziness/v
ertigo/anxiety and sensations in the ear. The PSYCHOL scale showed an
energy/awareness factor and a negative emotional state factor. The SIT
scale, finally, showed two factors: environmental disturbances and st
ressful conditions. Conclusions: Knowledge of somatic, psychological a
nd situational premonitory characteristics of attacks in Meniere's dis
ease could lead to improved therapy and counselling.