Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Italian term or phrase:
giramento di testa
English translation:
dizziness
Added to glossary by
Joseph Tein
Jan 29, 2022 23:04
2 yrs ago
28 viewers *
Italian term
United States
Multilingual. Very careful & precise.
Native in: English 
Works in: Spanish to English, Italian to English
giramento di testa
Italian to English
Medical
Medical (general)
adverse vaccine reactions
Ciao everybody.
I'm proofreading a Serious Adverse Event report that describes symptoms experienced by a person (I don't like to say 'patient' when I can avoid it) after receiving a vaccine: cefalea forte, giramento di testa, gonfiori linfonodi e dolore petto.
The linguist translated "giramento di testa" as "dizziness." When I check some other online resources, however, I see that this is sometimes translated as "lightheadedness." Dizziness and lightheadedness are not the same thing. To me, dizziness means an unpleasant spinning feeling, whereas lightheadedness is a sensation of nearly fainting or being about to faint.
To me, "dizziness" would be "vertigine" in Italian.
How would you translate "giramento di testa" here ... and why?
Thanks as always.
I'm proofreading a Serious Adverse Event report that describes symptoms experienced by a person (I don't like to say 'patient' when I can avoid it) after receiving a vaccine: cefalea forte, giramento di testa, gonfiori linfonodi e dolore petto.
The linguist translated "giramento di testa" as "dizziness." When I check some other online resources, however, I see that this is sometimes translated as "lightheadedness." Dizziness and lightheadedness are not the same thing. To me, dizziness means an unpleasant spinning feeling, whereas lightheadedness is a sensation of nearly fainting or being about to faint.
To me, "dizziness" would be "vertigine" in Italian.
How would you translate "giramento di testa" here ... and why?
Thanks as always.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +2 | dizziness |
Claudia Cherici
|
| 3 +1 | lightheadedness |
Z-Translations Translator
|
Proposed translations
+2
7 hrs
Claudia Cherici
Italy
Italy
Native in Italian
Works in field
Italy
30+ years experience in tech translation
Native in: Italian 
Works in: English to Italian, Italian to English
Related KudoZ points
:
110
Selected
dizziness
I would stick with dizziness. BTW, the NHS reports it as synonymous and I tend to agree with the NHS...:
https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/brain-ne...
https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/brain-ne...
Note from asker:
| Ciao Claudia. Thanks for your answer and the NHS link. I do not agree with them! From my own personal experience, as well as from discussions in my classes for medical interpreters (Spanish, but same question ... how do we translate the symptoms dizziness / lightheadedness) I believe they refer to different sensations. I just dug up one discussion, from the University of Michigan medical site on two different meanings of "dizziness." They distinguish between lighheadedness and vertigo. See: https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/dizzi#:~:text=Lightheadedness%20is%20a%20feeling%20that,improves%20when%20you%20lie%20down. |
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
philgoddard
: I agree with your reference, but surely that means either word is correct!
58 mins
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yes Phil, that was the point I was trying to prove. Either word is correct, so why change the existing "dizziness"...?
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| agree |
pennylyd
: since giramento basically means turning - I'd stick with dizziness - as you say lightheadedness is more a feeling of faintness (though some slight dizziness might be involved!) You might colloquially say your head is spinning / spinning head
7 hrs
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| agree |
EleoE
8 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks again Claudia. After thinking about it, it does seem to me that "dizziness" comes closer to the feeling of "giramento." "
+1
31 mins
Z-Translations Translator
Works in field
28 years of experience
Native in: Arabic (Variants: Lebanese, Syrian, Libyan, Kuwaiti, Standard-Arabian (MSA), Palestinian, Iraqi, Sudanese, Egyptian, Jordanian, Yemeni, Saudi , UAE)
Works in: English to Arabic, Arabic to English, Arabic, and 5 more.
lightheadedness
You are right giramento di testa is lightheadedness while vertigine is vertigo ie dizziness.
"One needs to be able to differentiate between vertigo and lightheadedness, (or dizziness from lightheadedness) because they are not the same."
https://themedichannel.com/difference-between-dizziness-and-...
"One needs to be able to differentiate between vertigo and lightheadedness, (or dizziness from lightheadedness) because they are not the same."
https://themedichannel.com/difference-between-dizziness-and-...
Note from asker:
| Hi Z-Translations. Thank you also for your suggestion. See my comment above in the Discussion. |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
José Patrício
: https://context.reverso.net/traduzione/italiano-inglese/gira...
55 mins
|
Reference comments
9 hrs
Reference:
Recent kudoz with good answers and discussion
Note from asker:
| Ciao Judy, thanks for this link. Stay healthy! |
Discussion
However, I think there is still some room to consider that this vaccinated person experienced lightheadedness. My Italian-native Project Manager wrote back about my uncertainty, saying "Regarding dizziness vs lightheadedness, I feel like most people in Italy would use “giramento di testa” for both things."
Ecco.