Vestibular Aqueduct Measured by Computed Radiography in Normal Persons and Patients with Meniere's Disease.

概要

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Polytomography of the vestibular aqueduct by a new method of radiographic imaging, computed radiography (CR), was carried out in 30 normal subjects and 25 patients with Meniere's disease, 14 of whom had bilateral involvement.The vestibular aqueduct could be identified clearly not only in normal subjects but also in patients with Meniere's disease. Normal vestibular aqueducts were funnel-shaped or tubular, and the width of the external aperture was about 6.0mm. On the other hand, a hypoplastic vestibular aqueduct with a narrow external aperture was often observed in patients with Meniere's disease. Especially in the affected ear of patients with unilateral Meniere's disease, the external aperture was very narrow; its mean width was 2.2mm. In these cases, the most common radiographic configuration of the vestibular aqueduct was filiform. It was concluded that a hypoplastic vestibular aqueduct may be one of the etiologic factors in Meniere's disease.