Otitis interna is inflammation, almost always infection, of the inner ear: the cochlea and the vestibular labyrinth inside the petrous temporal bone. In dogs it is uncommon and is nearly always the end stage of ear disease that has worked its way inward from a chronically infected canal and middle ear. It matters because it is the cause of peripheral vestibular disease you can treat, because it can leave a dog deaf or with a permanent head tilt, and because it can spread to the brainstem.
Key facts
Otitis interna at a glance- Species and system: dog; special senses (inner ear: cochlea, vestibule, semicircular canals and CN VIII).
- Cause: usually extension of otitis media, which in turn usually follows chronic otitis externa; Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas are the main bacteria (Merck).
- How common: otitis interna is rare compared with otitis externa (Merck); otitis media and/or interna caused 49 of 188 referral cases of peripheral vestibular disease, second to idiopathic vestibular syndrome (Orlandi 2020).
- Classic presentation: dog with chronic ear disease, sudden head tilt and falling to one side, horizontal or rotary nystagmus with the fast phase away from that side, often with facial paralysis or Horner syndrome on the same side; alert, with normal postural reactions.
- Key tests: neurological examination, otoscopy, CT or MRI of the bullae, middle ear culture.
- Not zoonotic and not reportable.
What's inside
12 sections in the full guide- Key facts
- How the NAVLE tests this
- Cause and pathophysiology
- Clinical signs
- Diagnosis
- Differential diagnoses
- Treatment and management
- Prevention, control and public health
- Prognosis
- Quick review
- Test yourself
- References
The full guide also has 6 tables, 2 figures, 3 self-test questions and 14 references, available to NAVLE members.
Read the full study guide
The full guide is part of every NAVLE plan, with diagnosis and treatment tables, figures, a quick review and self-test questions. Start a free trial to try the question bank, or log in if you are already a member.