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Equine Special Senses - Horse Anatomy (view source)
Revision as of 11:54, 22 November 2012
, 11:54, 22 November 2012→Middle Ear
====Middle Ear====
====Middle Ear====
[[Image:Middle Ear.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Middle Ear - Copyright David Bainbridge]]
The middle ear consists of the '''tympanic cavity''', the '''auditory ossicles''' and the '''eustachian tube'''. The boundary between the middle and inner ear is the '''oval window'''. The auditory ossicles are attached to the wall of the tympanic cavity by many ligaments and mucosal folds. The tympanic cavity is located within the petrous temporal bone, and can be divided into dorsal, middle and ventral parts:
*''Dorsal'': contains the auricular ossicle
*''Middle'': contians the tympanic membrane within its lateral wall, and opens rostrally into the nasopharynx via the eustachian tube
*''Ventral'': the tympanic bulla - a thin-walled, bulbous expansion of the temporal bone, which houses an extension of the tympanic cavity
The '''oval window''' is positioned rostrodorsally, to which one end of the stapes is attached by an annular ligament. It functions to connect the tympanic cavity with the inner ear. The '''round window''' is positioned more caudally, and leads to the cavity of the cochlea.
Sound vibrations are transmitted from the '''tympanic membrane''', across the tympanic cavity, via the '''ossicles''' (malleus, incus, then stapes). The ossicles, as well as transmitting sound vibrations from the tympanic membrane, also magnify the vibrations by about 20 times. This is necessary for initiating waves in the '''endolymph''' of the '''cochlea'''. The magnification is achieved by the action of two muscles that are attached to the ossicles, and which act as antagonists of each other. These two muscles are the ''tensor tympani'' muscle and the ''stapedius'' muscle. The tensor tympani muscle originates within the tympanic cavity, and inserts on the malleus. The contraction of this muscle creates tension of the ossicles, and therefore also of the tympanic membrane, all of which results in greater sensitivity. The stapedius muscle originates from the wall of the tympanic cavity, and inserts on the stapes. Contraction of this muscle pulls the end of the stapes away from the oval window, thereby reducing the fource of the transmission of sound vibrations.
The eustachian tube connects the tympanic cavity to the nasopharynx, which mark the beginning and end of the eustachian tube, respectively. The eustachian tube functions to equalise pressure on either side of the tympanic cavity, by opening while yawning or swallowing, for example. In the horse, the [[Equine Upper Respiratory Tract - Horse Anatomy#Guttural Pouches|guttural pouch]] is a paired diverticulum of the eustacian tube that is unique to this species. This is of clinical importance.
====Inner Ear====
====Inner Ear====
===Hearing===
===Hearing===