Gentamicin is primarily localized in vestibular type I hair cells after intratympanic administration.

Intratympanic (IT) gentamicin injections are effective in the control of episodic vertigo due to Ménière's disease. Histological studies in animals have found that the loss of type I vestibular hair cells far exceeds that of type II cells after IT gentamicin treatment. The objective of this study was to determine whether this selective toxicity for type I hair cells might be due to selective concentration of the drug by these cells.