Descriptive and topographical analysis of the labyrinthine artery in human fetuses.

Hearing or/and balance impairments may be caused by disorders of the labyrinthine artery (LA) and their branches. Most findings regarding the LA anatomy have been acquired through investigation of the cerebellopontine angle (CPA) in animal or adult human specimens. Eighty-eight CPAs and LAs of human fetuses were investigated using angio-techniques and microdissections. We found 15 intricate forms of distribution of LA. The LA usually originated from the extra-meatus loop in the anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA). The distribution of its terminal branches was 53.42% uni-arterial, 44.31% bi-arterial, and 2.27% tri-arterial systems. In the uni-arterial system, the LA described an anterior superior path to the cochlear nerve (CN) and originated its terminal branches in the gap between CN and the inferior part of the vestibular nerve. In the bi-arterial system, the anterior LA was located anterior and superior to the CN while the posterior LA appeared posterosuperior to the superior part of the vestibular nerve. In the tri-arterial system, the terminal branches originated directly from the AICA loop. Our results provide anatomical support to explain how compressions in the LA branches inside the internal acoustic meatus, as evoked by Schwannomas in the VII and VIII nerves, can lead to hearing and balance loss. The zone of the posterior vestibular nerve appeared to be a "safe area" for invasive procedures in these specimens.