background and aim: human beings receive a variety of sounds in their everyday lives. these sounds are generated by different sources, and are heard simultaneously or with a small time sequence. a characteristic of the auditory system is its ability to analyze complex sounds, and to make decisions about the source of each constituent part of these sounds. the present study intends to assess nor...

cochlear nerve (cn) aplasia refers to the absence of a visible cn on oblique sagittal magnetic resonance images of the lateral aspect of the inner auditory canal (iac). magnetic resonance (mr) is the preferred technique in patients with sensorineural hearing loss and/or vertigo; however, computed tomography (ct) is used to evaluate the iac or facial nerve canal. three types of aplasia or hypopl...

The aim of the study was to describe ossicle resorption in chronic otitis with cholesteatoma and correlate it with clinical parameters such as age, contralateral ear condition, tympanic membrane aspect, cholesteatoma pathogenesis and extension, associated lesions and hearing threshold. Preoperative clinical data were collected for 140 patients with chronic otitis with cholesteatoma, whose ossic...

Complete, articulated starfish fossils are rare. However, more frequently encountered dissociated skeletal elements (ossicles) permit reliable taxonomic identification, making them a valuable data source for diversity estimates. Nearly 300 asteroid ossicles, collected from the middle Toarcian marls in western France can be assigned to five species. Four species and two genera are described: Com...

HYPOTHESIS The osseointegrative capacity of medical-grade bone cement can be used to improve fixation and prevent displacement of an ossicular prosthesis in a guinea pig model. BACKGROUND Successful ossiculoplasty requires a firm connection between the vibrating tympanic membrane and the inner ear. In patients requiring revision ossiculoplasty, half of failures are due to prosthesis displacem...

The body wall of starfish is composed of magnesium calcite ossicles connected by collagenous tissue and muscles and it exhibits remarkable variability in stiffness, which is attributed to the mechanical mutability of the collagenous component. Using the common European starfish Asterias rubens as an experimental animal, here we have employed a variety of techniques to gain new insights into the...

Sesamoids and accessory ossicles seen in the foot vary widely in their prevalence and appearance. Occasionally, these bones may be associated with painful syndromes, due to various pathologies, including trauma, infection, inflammation, degeneration and others. However, symptomatic accessory and sesamoid bones are rare, and search for additional pathology should be performed. Although the clini...

We undertook a retrospective review of 24 arthroscopic procedures in patients with symptomatic ossicles around the malleoli of the ankle. Most of the patients had a history of injury and localised tenderness in the area coinciding with the radiological findings. Contrast-enhanced three-dimensional fast-spoiled gradient-echo MRI was performed and the results compared with the arthroscopic findin...

The mechanisms of formation of biogenic magnesium-rich calcite remain an enigma. Here we present ultrastructural and compositional details of ossicles from the seastar Pisaster giganteus (Echinodermata, Asteroidea). Powder X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy and elemental analyses confirm that the ossicles are composed of magnesium-rich calcite, whilst also containing about 0.01 % (w/w) of...