Visualization of inner ear dysplasias in patients with sensorineural hearing loss : High-resolution MR imaging and volume-rendered reconstructions

Purpose: We evaluated a data acquisition and post-processing protocol for inner ear (IE) assessment by MR imaging in patients. suffering from various labyrinth malformations. Material and Methods: MR IE studies of 158 consecutive patients (316 IEs) suffering from sensorineural hearing loss without evidence of an acoustic neurinoma were reviewed for pathologies of the IE and internal acoustic meatus. High-resolution MR data of all abnormal IE studies (n=45) were post-processed to previously standardized 3D volume rendered (VR) reconstructions. Results: In 9 patients (5.7%) the following IE dysplasias were detected: malformation of the cochlea (6 IEs), vestibulum (4 IEs). semicircular canals (12 IEs) and vestibular aqueduct/endolymphatic sac (10 IEs). One patient showed evidence of an aplasia of the vestibulocochlear nerve. In 4 patients multiple IE dysplasias were encountered. Comprehensive 3D visualization of all labyrinthine dysplasias was achieved by the use of two VR reconstructions. The overall time for bilateral IE assessment amounted to 30-35 min. Conclusion: The imaging protocol allows for rapid and comprehensive visualization of various IE dysplasias, based on a limited number of VR reconstructions.