Functions of Tympanic Membrane & Auditory
Ossicles
Dr. Shahjabeen
Associate Professor
Physiology
Objectives
• Discuss the Role of External ear
• Describe functions of Tympanic membrane
• Discuss the Role of Middle ear
• Describe Impedance matching & its significance
• Describe Attenuation reflex & its advantage
• Describe function of Eustachian Tube
The Sense of Hearing
For hearing, the sound waves have to pass through the three
subdivisions of the ear
• External ear
• Middle ear
• Internal ear
Structure of Ear
Characteristics of Sound
Conduction of Sound Waves
• Role of external ear
• External ear captures the sound waves
• Pinna, collects and reflects the sound waves into the external
auditory meatus
• Its peculiar shape, in humans, aids in discerning the source of sound
(e.g. in front versus behind the head)
• External auditory meatus conducts the sound waves to the tympanic
membrane.
• Helps in amplifying the sound waves (5-10 dB)
• Prevents mechanical injury to the tympanic membrane
• Helps in maintaining favorable temperature and humidity for normal
functioning of the tympanic membrane
Functions of Tympanic membrane
• The sound waves that pass through the pinna and external auditory meatus strike
the tympanic membrane
• The vibrating tympanic membrane causes the ear ossicles to vibrate
• Thus, the tympanic membrane acts as:
• Pressure receiver: It is extremely sensitive to pressure changes produced by the
sound waves
• Resonator: Starts vibrating with pressure changes produced by the sound waves
• Critically dampens: The vibrations of tympanic membrane cease immediately
after the end of sound
• Changes acoustical energy into mechanical energy
Role of middle ear
• Conduction of sound stimulus by the
tympanic membrane to ear ossicles
• Conduction of sound waves
mechanically from the middle ear
ossicles to the inner ear
• Impedance matching mechanism
• Attenuation reflex
Impedance Matching
• Amplification of sounds to overcome difference in impedance
between the air of external auditory canal and the fluid of the inner
ear
• It is the process by which tympanic membrane and auditory ossicles
transfers the sound vibrations in cochlear fluid with minimum loss of
energy by matching the impedance offered by fluid
Impedance Matching
• Impedance Matching is accomplished by the middle ear
• From 2 main effects:
o Reduction in Area
o Increase in Force
Reduction in Area
• Sound striking the (relatively large) tympanic membrane
• Surface area of the tympanic membrane is about 55 square
millimeters
• Delivered to the (much smaller) stapes footplate
• Surface area of the stapes averages 3.2 square millimeters
• Area Ratio = 17 to 1
Increase in Force
• The malleus and incus act like a lever
• Whenever there is a pivot:
• Force x Length in = Force x Length out
• Malleus manubrium = 1.3 times as long as Incus long process
Total Amplification of Sound
• Increased Force: 1.3 times
• Decreased Area : 17times
• 22 times (27.7 dB)
Significance of Impedance Matching
• Impedance matching is the most important function of middle ear
Because of impedance matching the sound waves (stimuli) are
transmitted to cochlea with minimum loss of intensity
• The impedance matching is about 50 to 75 percent perfect for sound
frequencies between 300 and 3000 cycles/sec, which allows
utilization of most of the energy in the incoming sound waves
Acoustic Reflex or Attenuation Reflex Or Tympanic Reflex
• Preventive reflex which reduces sound
pressure amplitude by affecting the
mobility and transmission properties
of the auditory ossicles
• Stimulus for this reflex is loud sound
• Latent period is 40–80 ms.
• Reflex activity
o The two muscles of the middle ear (tensor tympani and stapedius) contract
reflexively in response to the intense sound
o Contraction of tensor tympani muscle pulls the malleus inwards whereas
contraction of stapedius muscle pulls stapes outwards
• These two opposing forces make the ossicular system very rigid and therefore it
fails to vibrate with the sound waves
• Thus, sound is not allowed to enter inner ear (i.e. is attenuated or intensity is
reduced by 30–40 decibel)
Advantages of Attenuation reflex
• Prevents occurrence of damage to the cochlea from the intense
sounds like that of loud music, of jet aircraft, etc.
• It attenuates and masks all the low frequency environmental
sounds and allows the person to concentrate on the sound above
1000 Hz, where most of the prominent information in voice
communication is transmitted
• It occurs just prior to vocalization and chewing, which suggests
that the middle ear muscles may act to reduce the intensity of the
sounds produced by these activities
• The latent period of attenuation reflex is 40–80 ms, sudden, brief,
extremely loud sound, such as due to bomb explosion or gun shot
is likely to cause deafness due to damage to the cochlea
Role of Eustachian Tube
• Eustachian tube or the auditory tube is the flattened canal
extending from the anterior wall of middle ear to
nasopharynx
• Eustachian tube is not concerned with hearing directly
• Responsible for equalizing the pressure on either side of
tympanic membrane
• The Eustachian tube also operates like a valve, which
opens during swallowing, chewing and yawning
• This equalizes the pressure on either side of the eardrum, which
is necessary for optimal hearing
• Without this function, a difference between the static pressure in
the middle ear and the outside pressure may develop, causing
the eardrum to displace inward or outward
Airplane Ear
• When an airplane climbs or descends, the air pressure changes rapidly.
• The eustachian tube often can't react fast enough, which causes the symptoms
of airplane ear.
• Swallowing or yawning opens the eustachian tube and allows the middle ear to
get more air, equalizing the air pressure
Sore throat and Middle ear infections
• If fluid collects in the middle ear, during an
infection, the Eustachian tube may
become blocked. The resulting pressure
difference between the external and
middle ear can produce pain displacement
of the tympanic membrane or even
rupture of the tympanic membrane
• Infections originating in the throat
sometimes spread through the Eustachian
tube to the middle ear. The resulting fluid
accumulation in the middle ear not only is
painful but also interferes with sound
conduction across the middle ear
Thank You
Guyton & Hall Text Book Of Medical Physiology
Text Book Of Medical Physiology by Indu Khurana
