Vestibular line of Lapayowker

The vestibular line of Lapayowker refers to a vertical line passing down the most lateral aspect of vestibular apparatus. The petrous part of internal carotid artery lies medial to this line but lies lateral to it in the case of an aberrant internal carotid artery which is the characteristic angiographic finding .

History and etymology

It was first described by Marc S Lapayowkeh (1927-2014), an American radiologist, and his colleagues . In their seminal paper, the "vestibular line" was expressed to indicate a gross estimate of the medial extent of the middle ear on anteroposterior digital subtraction angiography and CT . Of the one hundred examined, no normal patient possessed a carotid artery which was lateral to this line .