Membranous labyrinth
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
Citation:
Hacking C, Deng F, Chau L, et al. Membranous labyrinth. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 13 Mar 2025) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-66901
rID:
66901
Article created:
Disclosures:
At the time the article was created Craig Hacking had no recorded disclosures.
View Craig Hacking's current disclosures
Last revised:
Disclosures:
At the time the article was last revised Craig Hacking had the following disclosures:
- Philips Australia, Paid speaker at Philips Spectral CT events (ongoing)
These were assessed during peer review and were determined to not be relevant to the changes that were made.
View Craig Hacking's current disclosures
Revisions:
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Systems:
Sections:
Synonyms:
- Endolymphatic labyrinth
- Membranous labyrinths
- Endolymphatic labyrinths
The membranous labyrinth or endolymphatic labyrinth is the part of the inner ear housed in the osseous labyrinth. It comprises 3 distinct, but joined, sensory sacs and ducts supplied by the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII):
- cochlear duct (scala media) in the cochlea, responsible for hearing
- utricle and saccule in the vestibule, responsible for static balance
- semicircular ducts in the semicircular canals, responsible for kinetic balance
As the membranous labyrinth is smaller than the osseous labyrinth, the two are separated by perilymph, which does not communicate with the endolymph contained in the membranous labyrinth.
On this page:
Arterial supply
- vestibular and cochlear branches of the labyrinthine artery (from the basilar artery)
Innervation
The inferior vestibular branch of the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII) supplies the saccule. The inferior vestibular branch also gives off the singular nerve which courses through foramen singulare to supply the posterior semicircular duct.
The superior vestibular branch of the CN VIII supplies the utricle, superior (anterior) and lateral (horizontal) semicircular ducts.
The cochlear branch of CN VIII supplies the cochlear duct.
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Related pathology
References
- 1. Moore KL, Agur AMR, Dalley AF. Clinically oriented anatomy. LWW. ISBN:1451119453. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 2. Last's anatomy, regional and applied. Churchill Livingstone. ISBN:044304662X. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 3. Butler P, Mitchell A, Healy JC. Applied Radiological Anatomy. Cambridge University Press. (2012) ISBN:0521766664. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 4. Susan Standring. Gray's Anatomy. ISBN: 9780702052309
Incoming Links
Articles:
- Endolymph
- Labyrinthitis ossificans
- Sensorineural hearing loss
- Semicircular canals
- Cogan syndrome
- Perilymph
- Semicircular duct
- Saccule (ear)
- Endolymphatic duct
- Inner ear
- Labyrinthitis
- Labyrinth (disambiguation)
- Vestibule (ear)
- Mastoidectomy
- Cochlea
- Otic capsule
- Labyrinth of the inner ear
- Cochlear duct
- Utricle (ear)
- Hennebert sign (inner ear)
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