Ch. 10: Audiology & Hearing Disorders Flashcards
Outer Ear
Composed of the auricle/pinna and external auditory canal (or external auditory meatus/EAM).
Auricle/Pinna
Funnels sound to the ear canal and helps localize sound. Most visible part of the ear. Composed primarily of cartilage.
External Auditory Canal
Goes from the pinna to the tympanic membrane/eardrum. Muscular tube made mostly of cartilage. Curves slightly like an S. Has special cells that secrete cerumen.
Cerumen
Functions of this substance include lubricating and cleansing the ear canal, and protecting the ear from fungi or small insects. Excreted from cells in the external auditory canal.
Middle Ear
Air-filled cavity that is separated from the outer ear by the tympanic membrane. Houses three tiny bones to form the ossicular chain. Eustachian tube connects this area to the nasopharynx.
Tympanic Membrane
Membrane that is elastic, thin, and cone-shaped. It is flexible and tough and vibrates in response to sound pressure. The entire structure responds to low-frequency sounds, but only certain portions respond to high-frequency sounds.
Ossicular Chain
Structure housed in the middle ear y ligaments. Composed of three tiny bones: the incus, malleus, and stapes. Transmits sound efficiently with no distortion. Amplifies incoming sound by approximately 30 dB before transmitting it to the fluids of the inner ear.
Malleus
Largest ossicle. Resembles a hammer. Embedded in the TM. Because of this attachment, the vibrations of the TM are transmitted to this structure. Attached to the incus.
Incus
Connected to the malleus and stapes by a tight joint that permits very little movement. Shaped like an anvil.
Stapes
Ossicle that looks like a footplate or stirrup. The footplate is inserted into the oval window.
Oval Window
Small area in the middle ear that leads to the inner ear. Small opening in the temporal bone that houses the inner ear.
Tensor Tympani & Stapedius Muscles
Muscles in the middle ear that dampen the vibrations of the TM and the ossicular chain.
Tensor Tympani
Muscle that tenses the TM so that its vibrations are reduced. Innervated by CN V.
Stapedius Muscle
Stiffens the ossicular chain so that its vibrations are reduced. Innervated by CN VII. Smallest muscle in the body.
Acoustic Reflex
Stiffens the middle ear system, especially the TM, in response to very loud sounds as a protection mechanism.
Eustachian Tube
Helps maintain equal air pressure within and outside the middle ear. Connects the middle ear with the nasopharynx. Goes from the anterior middle ear wall to the posterior wall of the nasopharynx. The nasopharyngeal end of this structure can be opened by yawning or swallowing. This ventilates the middle ear by letting in fresh air. Contracts with the help of the tensor veli palatini and the levator veli palatini. Can allow germs and infections to spread to the middle ear, potentially causing infections.
Inner Ear
A system of interconnecting tunnels (labyrinths) within the temporal bone. Begins with the oval window. Includes the vestibular system and the cochlea.
Perilymph
Fluid that fills the labyrinths of the inner ear.
Vestibular System
System within the inner ear concerned with balance. Contains 3 semicircular canals. Related to movement, balance, and body posture.
Semicircular Canals
Responsible for equilibrium.
Cochlea
Snail-shaped, coiled tunnel that is filled with endolymph.
Basilar Membrane
Floor of the cochlea duct. Contains the organ of Corti. Different portions of this structure respond best to sounds of different frequencies. The tip is thick, wide, and lax—ideal for low-frequency sounds. The base is thin narrow, and stiff—ideal for high-frequency sounds.
Organ of Corti
Located in basilar membrane. Bathed in endolymph and contains several thousand hair cells (cilia), which respond to sound vibrations.
15,500 Hair Cells
Number of hair cells contained in the organ of Corti of each ear.
Reissner’s Membrane
Allows transmission of wavelike movements in perilymph from stapes vibrations in the oval window to the endolymph. The endolymph then transmits the movements to the basilar membrane.
Cranial Nerve VIII
Picks up the neural impulses created by the movement of hair cells in the cochlea. A bundle of neurons with two branches. Vestibular branch → equilibrium. Auditory branch → supplies many hair cells of the cochlea and conducts electrical sound impulses from the cochlea to the brain. Has contralateral and ipsilateral pathways.
Cerebellopontine Angle
Where the auditory nerve exits the temporal bone through the internal auditory meatus and enters the brain stem.
Docussate
To cross over.
Primary Auditory Area of the Temporal Lobe
Area of the brain where sound is interpreted.
Acoustics
A branch of physics that is the study of sound as a physical event.
Psychoacoustics
The study of sound as the psychological experience of hearing.
Mediums
Areas that sound waves travel through (e.g., gas, liquid, solid). Must be elastic to carry sound.
Cycles
Repeated patterns of movement that are measure per second. How vibrations occur.
Frequency
Refers to the number of times a cycle vibration repeats itself within a second.
Pure Tone
A tone of a single frequency.
Simple Harmonic Motion/Sinusoidal Motion
A tone of a single frequency that repeats itself.
Complex Tone
Created by two or more sounds of differing frequencies.
Periodic Vibrations
Vibrations that have a pattern that repeats itself at regular intervals until it is stopped by external action.
Aperiodic Vibrations
Vibrations that do not have a repeating pattern and occur at irregular intervals.
Sound Waves
Displacement of air molecules, causing them to move.
Hertz (Hz)
Refers to cycles per second.
Compression
When air molecules are packed tightly together.
Rarefaction
When air molecules are farther apart. Also known as expansion.
Pitch
Perceptual correlate of changes in frequency.
Intensity
Perceptual correlate of the loudness of sounds.
Amplitude
Extent of displacement of the molecules in their to-and-fro motion. The greater the range of displacement, the greater this becomes.
Decibel (dB)
Measure of sound pressure. Measures the intensity of one sound against another.
Sound Pressure Level (SPL)
The intensity of a sound expressed in terms of dB.
Hearing Level (HL)
The lowest intensity of a sound necessary to stimulate the auditory system. Measured in dB.
Air Conduction
In this process, sound waves strike the TM. The movement of the TM causes the ossicles to move, creating movement of the fluids of the inner ear. These movements cause vibrations in the basilar membrane of the cochlea. The hair cells supplied by the acoustic nerve respond to these vibrations, and the sound is carried to the brain by the acoustic nerve. In this process, sound travels through the medium of air.
Bone Conduction
In this process, the bones of the skull vibrate in response to airborne sound waves, causing movements in the inner ear fluids. Sound travels through the medium of bone.
Conductive Hearing Loss
In this type of HL, the efficiency with which the sound is conducted to the middle or inner ear is diminished.
Up to 15 dB
Normal hearing in children. In adults the upper limit of hearing may extend to 25 dB.