Dilated Dysplastic Vestibule

OBJECTIVE: Large vestibular aqueduct syndrome (LVAS) is one of the most common anomalies of the inner ear. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the vestibule for associated aberrations. In particular, we assessed the vestibular volume in patients with LVAS, compared it to an age-matched control population, and evaluated the relationship between the size of the vestibular aqueduct and the vestibule. METHODS: We reviewed studies of high-resolution computed tomography of temporal bone of 24 consecutive patients with LVAS (15 girls and 9 boys; average age, 8.1 years). Of these, 21 patients had bilateral LVAS and 3 patients had unilateral LVAS. Each ear was evaluated for the size of the vestibular aqueduct and the volume of the vestibule. Similar measurements were obtained in an age-matched control population (28 girls and 18 boys; average age, 8.3 years). RESULTS: The volume of the vestibule was found to be significantly enlarged in patients with LVAS compared to the control population (right ear, P < 0.0001; left ear, P < 0.0001). A linear correlation could be established between an enlarged vestibular aqueduct and corresponding increase in the volume of the vestibule (right side, P < 0.01; left side, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: A dilated dysplastic vestibule is a consistently associated finding in patients with LVAS.