Labyrinthitis

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Labyrinthitis" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Labyrinthitis and vestibular neuritis
Other names	Otitis interna, vestibular neuronitis, vestibular neuritis
Diagram of the inner ear
Specialty	Otorhinolaryngology
Frequency	3.5 cases per 100,000[1]

Labyrinthitis is inflammation of the labyrinth, a maze of fluid-filled channels in the inner ear. Vestibular neuritis is inflammation of the vestibular nerve (the nerve in the ear that sends messages related to motion and position to the brain).^[2][3][4] Both conditions involve inflammation of the inner ear.^[5] Labyrinths that house the vestibular system sense changes in the head's position or the head's motion.^[6] Inflammation of these inner ear parts results in a vertigo (sensation of the world spinning) and also possible hearing loss or tinnitus (ringing in the ears).^[6] It can occur as a single attack, a series of attacks, or a persistent condition that diminishes over three to six weeks. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, and eye nystagmus.

The cause is often not clear. It may be due to a virus, but it can also arise from bacterial infection, head injury, extreme stress, an allergy, or as a reaction to medication. 30% of affected people had a common cold prior to developing the disease.^[1] Either bacterial or viral labyrinthitis can cause a permanent hearing loss in rare cases.^[7] This appears to result from an imbalance of neuronal input between the left and right inner ears.^[8]