Anatomy and physiology of peripheral and central vestibular system

The vestibular system includes different anatomical structures and physiological pathways. In the first part of this chapter, we will briefly introduce the main anatomical constituents, i.e., vestibule, semicircular canals, vestibular ganglia and nerve, vestibular nuclei, flocculo-nodular lobe of cerebellum and other structures in the brain stem. In the second parts, we will discuss the pathways generated by signals transduced by vestibular structures. Briefly, the bony labyrinth is lined with the endolymph-containing membranous labyrinth, showing two chambers (utricle and saccule) and three semicircular canals (horizontal, anterior, and posterior). Each canal contains a receptor organ call…