A mouse model of bilateral acute inner-ear (labyrinthine) injury with vestibular involvement reveals functional, behavioral, and histological correlates of vestibular compensation

Abstract

Bilateral vestibular dysfunction disrupts balance and spatial orientation, yet mechanisms of injury and compensation remain incompletely defined. We established a mouse model of bilateral acute inner-ear (labyrinthine) injury with vestibular involvement by sequentially incising the round and oval windows, and evaluate auditory brainstem responses (ABR), vestibular sensory-evoked potentials (VsEP), behavior, and histology across postoperative days 1–28. Threshold elevations and behavioral impairment peaked on day 3, with hair-cell degeneration most prominent early and partial morphological recovery by day 28. These findings delineate the acute injury phase and early stabilization, providing a platform to study vestibular repair and functional recovery.