Chapter 127: Anatomy of the Temporal Bone, External Ear, and Middle Ear Flashcards
Temporal bone articulates with
- sphenoid
- parietal
- occipital
- zygomatic
Temporal bone consists of four embryologically distinct components
- squamous
- mastoid
- petrous
- tympanic
Forms the lateral wall of the middle fossa
Squamous
It consists of a plate of bone with an anterior extension known as the zygomatic process
Squamous
Formed along the most inferior insertion by the temporalis muscle; it is aligned with the zygomatic process and is used as
a surface landmark to estimate the location of the middle fossa
floor
Horizontal ridge/temporal line
Average offset of temporal line
4.7 mm
Bulbous bony structure shaped by the expansion of air-filled spaces within
Mastoid
Constant pull by the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) and posterior belly of the digastric muscles elongates the mastoid inferiorly to form the
Mastoid tip/mastoid process
A funnel-shaped cartilaginous structure that is continuous with the meatus and the EAC
Auricle
The blood supply of the external ear originates from the
External division of the carotid artery via the posterior auricular and superficial temporal vessels
External auditory canal is about
2.5 cm in length
Comprises a lateral cartilaginous (lateral 3rd) portion and a medial bony (medial 2/3) portion
Skin that lines the membranous canal
Thicker and more mobile
Endowed with sebaceous and apocrine (ceruminous) glands and hair follicles
Bony portion of the canal is lined by
Thin, immobile skin that lacks hair and glands and is continuous with the epithelium of the tympanic membrane
Narrowest portion of EAC
Bony-cartilaginous junction/isthmus
Site at which underlying osteomyelitis will manifest as mounds
of granulation tissue in the EAC, a finding pathognomonic for
malignant otitis externa
Bony-cartilaginous junction
Incomplete ossification of the anterior bony canal produces an opening into the infratemporal region
Foramen of Huschke
Serve as a means for extension of malignant tumors from the
EAC to the deep lobe of the parotid gland
Foramen of Huschke
Naturally occurring defects in the cartilaginous portion of the EAC
Fissures of Santorini
Provide avenues of spread to the superficial lobe of the gland
Fissures of Santorini
True of False
The external ear is developed from ectodermal and mesodermal components of the first and second branchial arches and the intervening first branchial groove
True
Distinct condensations of tissue that give rise to the tragus and most of the helix, antihelix, antitragus, and lobule and the inferior helix
Hillocks of His
Ttragus and most of the helix
First branchial arch
Antihelix, antitragus, and lobule and the inferior helix
Second branchial arch
Sensory innervation to the external ear is provided by
- first branchial nerve
- auriculotemporal branch of the trigeminal nerve
- cutaneous branch of the facial nerve