Acute labyrinthitis associated with systemic Candida albicans infection in ageing mice.

The yeast Candida albicans is an important opportunistic pathogen that has been associated with disease of the inner ear. This study describes the histopathology of acute labyrinthitis caused by systemic infection with C. albicans in aging inbred mice. Within four days after infection, yeast and hyphal forms of C.albicans were found in the membranous labyrinth. The utricle and the adjacent parts of the ampullary regions of the semicircular canals were most severely affected, but damage was also seen in the scala media, the scala tympani, the saccule, and the scala vestibuli. In the utricle, the lining epithelium of the membranous labyrinth was disrupted, and the lining cells of the vestibular membrane showed foci in which the membrane was disrupted. The data suggest that age may represent a risk factor for fungal labyrinthitis.