internal auditory canal

noun

variants: also internal acoustic meatus or internal auditory meatus

Medical Definition of internal auditory canal

: a short auditory canal in the petrous portion of the temporal bone through which pass the facial and auditory nerves and the internal auditory artery Computed tomography is particularly useful for identifying bony lesions of the temporal bone and mastoid process, and magnetic resonance imaging … is now capable of demonstrating lesions such as acoustic neuromas measuring 5 mm in diameter in the internal auditory canal. — Joseph B. Nadol, Jr., The New England Journal of Medicine, 7 Oct. 1993