Auditory and imaging markers of atypical enlarged vestibular aqueduct

To characterize the auditory and imaging markers of atypical enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA). 15 EVA cases (26 ears) confirmed via high-resolution MRI (HRMRI) that did not meet the Valvassori criterion on high-resolution CT (HRCT) were classified as atypical EVA. Another 21 EVA cases (40 ears) meeting the Valvassori criterion were randomly chosen as typical EVA. The hearing loss (HL), HRCT, and HRMRI findings were compared between the two groups. The difference of HL severity between atypical and typical EVA was not statistically significant (χ2 = 0.12, P > 0.05. The vestibular aqueducts (VA) of atypical EVA cases manifested as borderline dilation (n = 17), focal dilation (n = 3), and normal appearance (n = 6) on the HRCT. The midpoint width of atypical and typical EVA cases was 1.06 ± 0.18 mm and 2.10 ± 0.55 mm, respectively, exhibiting a significant difference (t = – 9.20, P