RESUMEN
BACKGROUND AND AIM: The cochlear aqueduct (CA) connects between the perilymphatic space of the cochlea and the subarachnoid space in the posterior cranial fossa. The study aimed to examine 1) whether cavitation of the CA occurs on the subarachnoid side or the cochlear side and 2) the growth and/or degeneration of the CA and its concomitant vein. METHODS: We examined paraffin-embedded histological sections from human fetuses: 15 midterm fetuses (crown-rump length or CRL, 39-115â¯mm) and 12 near-term fetuses (CRL, 225-328â¯mm). RESULTS: A linear mesenchymal condensation, i.e., a likely candidate of the CA anlage, was observed without the accompanying vein at 9-10 weeks. The vein appeared until 15 weeks, but it was sometimes distant from the CA. At 10-12 weeks, the subarachnoid space (or the epidural space) near the glossopharyngeal nerve rapidly protruded into the CA anlage and reached the scala tympani, in which cavitation was gradually on-going but without epithelial lining. However, CA cavitation did not to occur in the anlage. At the opening to the scala, the epithelial-like lining of the CA lost its meningeal structure. At near-term, the CA was often narrowed and obliterated. CONCLUSION: The CA develops from meningeal tissues when the cavitation of the scala begins. The latter cavitation seemed to reduce tissue stiffness leading, to meningeal protrusion. The so-called anlage of CA might be a phylogenetic remnant of the glossopharyngeal nerve branch. A course of cochlear veins appears to be determined by a rule different from the CA development.
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Acueducto Coclear , Oído Interno , Humanos , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Filogenia , Cóclea/irrigación sanguínea , Rampa TimpánicaRESUMEN
The spatial variations of the intricate cytoarchitecture, fluid scalae, and mechano-electric transduction in the mammalian cochlea have long been postulated to provide the organ with the ability to perform a real-time, time-frequency processing of sound. However, the precise manner by which this tripartite coupling enables the exquisite cochlear filtering has yet to be articulated in a base-to-apex mathematical model. Moreover, while sound-evoked tuning curves derived from mechanical gains are excellent surrogates for auditory nerve fiber thresholds at the base of the cochlea, this correlation fails at the apex. The key factors influencing the divergence of both mechanical and neural tuning at the apex, as well as the spatial variation of mechanical tuning, are incompletely understood. We develop a model that shows that the mechanical effects arising from the combination of the taper of the cochlear scalae and the spatial variation of the cytoarchitecture of the cochlea provide robust mechanisms that modulate the outer hair cell-mediated active response and provide the basis for the transition of the mechanical gain spectra along the cochlear spiral. Further, the model predicts that the neural tuning at the base is primarily governed by the mechanical filtering of the cochlear partition. At the apex, microscale fluid dynamics and nanoscale channel dynamics must also be invoked to describe the threshold neural tuning for low frequencies. Overall, the model delineates a physiological basis for the difference between basal and apical gain seen in experiments and provides a coherent description of high- and low-frequency cochlear tuning.
Asunto(s)
Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Audición/fisiología , Mamíferos/fisiología , Animales , Fenómenos Biomecánicos , Biofisica , Acueducto Coclear/anatomía & histología , Análisis de Elementos Finitos , CobayasRESUMEN
Understanding how drugs are distributed in perilymph following local applications is important as local drug therapies are increasingly used to treat disorders of the inner ear. The potential contribution of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) entry to perilymph homeostasis has been controversial for over half a century, largely due to artifactual contamination of collected perilymph samples with CSF. Measures of perilymph flow and of drug distribution following round window niche applications have both suggested a slow, apically directed flow occurs along scala tympani (ST) in the normal, sealed cochlea. In the present study, we have used fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran as a marker to study perilymph kinetics in guinea pigs. Dextran is lost from perilymph more slowly than other substances so far quantified. Dextran solutions were injected from pipettes sealed into the lateral semicircular canal (SCC), the cochlear apex, or the basal turn of ST. After varying delays, sequential perilymph samples were taken from the cochlear apex or lateral SCC, allowing dextran distribution along the perilymphatic spaces to be quantified. Variability was low and findings were consistent with the injection procedure driving volume flow towards the cochlear aqueduct, and with volume flow during perilymph sampling driven by CSF entry at the aqueduct. The decline of dextran with time in the period between injection and sampling was consistent with both a slow volume influx of CSF (~30 nL/min) entering the basal turn of ST at the cochlear aqueduct and a CSF-perilymph exchange driven by pressure-driven fluid oscillation across the cochlear aqueduct. Sample data also allowed contributions of other processes, such as communications with adjacent compartments, to be quantified. The study demonstrates that drug kinetics in the basal turn of ST is complex and is influenced by a considerable number of interacting processes.
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Líquido Cefalorraquídeo/fisiología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Dextranos/farmacocinética , Fluoresceína-5-Isotiocianato/análogos & derivados , Homeostasis , Perilinfa/metabolismo , Animales , Simulación por Computador , Femenino , Fluoresceína-5-Isotiocianato/farmacocinética , Cobayas , Cinética , MasculinoRESUMEN
Targeting and downregulating specific genes with antisense and decoy oligonucleotides, ribozymes or RNA interference (RNAi) offer the theoretical potential of altering a disease phenotype. Here we review the molecular mechanism behind the in vivo application of RNAi-mediated gene silencing, focusing on its application to the inner ear. RNAi is a physiological phenomenon in which small, double-stranded RNA molecules (small interfering RNA, siRNA) reduce expression of homologous genes. Notable for its exquisite sequence specificity, it is ideally applied to diseases caused by a gain-of-function mechanism of action. Types of deafness in which gain-of-function mutations are observed include DFNA2 (KCNQ4), DFNA3 (GJB2) and DFNA5 (DFNA5). Several strategies can be used to deliver siRNA into the inner ear, including cationic liposomes, adeno-associated and lentiviral vectors, and adenoviral vectors. Transduction efficiency with cationic liposomes is low and the effect is transient; with adeno-associated and lentiviral vectors, long-term transfection is possible using a small hairpin RNA expression cassette.
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Enfermedades del Laberinto/terapia , Interferencia de ARN , Animales , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Conexina 26 , Conexinas , Regulación de la Expresión Génica/fisiología , Técnicas de Transferencia de Gen , Vectores Genéticos , Pérdida Auditiva Sensorineural/genética , Humanos , Canales de Potasio KCNQ/genética , Oligorribonucleótidos Antisentido/fisiología , Interferencia de ARN/fisiología , ARN Catalítico/fisiología , TransfecciónRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: There exist 3 communication routes between the intracranial space and the inner ear, the vestibular aqueduct, the cochlear aqueduct, and the internal auditory canal. They possess a key role in inner ear pressure regulation and fluid homeostasis and are related to inner ear diseases. REVIEW METHODS: Relevant literature was reviewed, and the current knowledge of the anatomy, physiologic importance, and relations to inner ear diseases were described. Pathologic communication routes such as semicircular canal dehiscence syndrome were highlighted as well. CONCLUSION: Abnormalities in all 3 communication routes may predispose or be the cause of distinct inner ear pathologic condition and involved in other cochlear and vestibular syndromes, in which their role is not completely clear. The increasing knowledge of the underlying mechanisms encourages promising approaches for possible intervention in the future.
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Acueducto Coclear , Oído Interno/anatomía & histología , Enfermedades del Laberinto/etiología , Canales Semicirculares , Acueducto Vestibular , Acueducto Coclear/diagnóstico por imagen , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiopatología , Oído Interno/fisiología , Homeostasis/fisiología , Humanos , Enfermedades del Laberinto/diagnóstico por imagen , Enfermedades del Laberinto/fisiopatología , Canales Semicirculares/diagnóstico por imagen , Canales Semicirculares/fisiología , Canales Semicirculares/fisiopatología , Tomografía Computarizada por Rayos X , Acueducto Vestibular/diagnóstico por imagen , Acueducto Vestibular/fisiología , Acueducto Vestibular/fisiopatologíaRESUMEN
The cochlear aqueduct connecting intralabyrinthine and cerebrospinal fluids (CSF) acts as a low-pass filter that should be able to transmit infrasonic pressure waves from CSF to cochlea. Recent experiments have shown that otoacoustic emissions generated at 1kHz respond to pressure-related stapes impedance changes with a change in phase relative to the generator tones, and provide a non-invasive means of assessing intracochlear pressure changes. In order to characterize the transmission to the cochlea of CSF pressure waves due to respiration, the distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) of 12 subjects were continuously monitored around 1kHz at a rate of 6.25epochs/s, and their phase relative to the stimulus tones was extracted. The subjects breathed normally, in different postures, while thoracic movements were recorded so as to monitor respiration. A correlate of respiration was found in the time variation of DPOAE phase, with an estimated mean amplitude of 10 degrees , i.e. 60mm water, suggesting little attenuation across the aqueduct. Its phase lag relative to thoracic movements varied between 0 degrees and -270 degrees . When fed into a two-compartment model of CSF and labyrinthine spaces, these results suggest that respiration rate at rest is just above the resonance frequency of the CSF compartment, and just below the corner frequency of the cochlear-aqueduct low-pass filter, in line with previous estimates from temporal bone and intracranial measurements. The fact that infrasonic CSF waves can be monitored through the cochlea opens diagnostic possibilities in neurology.
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Líquido Cefalorraquídeo/fisiología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Líquidos Laberínticos/fisiología , Emisiones Otoacústicas Espontáneas/fisiología , Fenómenos Fisiológicos Respiratorios , Sonido , Adulto , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Modelos Biológicos , Distorsión de la Percepción , Tiempo de ReacciónRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: The cochlear aqueduct connects the scala tympani to the subarachnoid space and is the main pressure equalization canal for the inner ear. Increases in inner ear volume and pressure are thought to cause clinical symptoms such as vertigo, tinnitus and fluctuating hearing loss. In this study the flow resistance of the cochlear aqueduct was determined and its relation with inner ear pressure was studied. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Inner ear pressure was measured in the scala tympani through the round window using a micropipette. Through a second micropipette, artificial perilymph was infused into, or withdrawn from, the scala tympani at various constant rates. From the infusion rate and the change in perilymphatic pressure during infusion the flow resistance of the cochlear aqueduct was calculated. RESULTS: The flow resistance was found not to be constant but to depend on the position of the round window membrane and possibly on the magnitude and direction of fluid flow through the aqueduct. Measured flow resistance values were in the range 11-45 Pa s/nl. For very small flow values the flow resistance averaged over 6 animals was 21 Pa s/nl. CONCLUSIONS: The flow resistance of the cochlear aqueduct is not a constant value. The cochlear aqueduct is a canal with dynamic properties and may play a role in the complicated process of inner ear pressure regulation.
Asunto(s)
Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Oído Interno/fisiología , Perilinfa/fisiología , Animales , Cobayas , Modelos Biológicos , Presión , Ventana Redonda/fisiologíaRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To determine a relation between acute inner ear pressure changes and cochlear function as measured by low-level 2f(1)-f(2) distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs). MATERIAL AND METHODS: During and after a change in inner ear pressure induced by injection or aspiration of perilymph, the 2f(1)-f(2) DPOAE at 4.5 kHz generated by low-level primaries was recorded in the guinea pig. RESULTS: Large changes in overall inner ear pressure produced only small changes in the 2f(1)-f(2) amplitude and phase. During injection of 0.5 microl of artificial perilymph into the scala tympani over a 10-s period, the mean inner ear pressure increased by approximately 500 Pa, with an accompanying mean increase in the 2f(1)-f(2) amplitude of 0.7 dB. During aspiration of 0.5 microl of perilymph over a 10-s period, the mean inner ear pressure decreased by approximately 700 Pa, with an accompanying mean decrease in the 2f(1)-f(2) amplitude of 0.9 dB. Changes in DPOAE amplitude followed inner ear pressure changes with a delay of 1-2 s. The magnitude and sign of the amplitude changes can (partly) be explained by a change in oval window stiffness. No explanation was found for the measured delay. CONCLUSION: Clinically, these experiments can be of value in gaining insight into the pathophysiological mechanisms of pathological pressure changes as seen in Meniere's disease and perilymphatic fistulae.
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Oído Interno/fisiología , Enfermedad de Meniere/fisiopatología , Emisiones Otoacústicas Espontáneas/fisiología , Perilinfa/fisiología , Animales , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Femenino , Cobayas , PresiónRESUMEN
The resistance for fluid flow of the cochlear aqueduct was measured in guinea pigs for different positions of the round window membrane. These different positions were obtained by applying different constant pressures to the middle ear cavity. Fluid flow through the aqueduct was induced by small pressure steps superimposed on these constant pressures. It was found that the resistance for fluid flow through the aqueduct depended on the round window position but not on flow direction. The results can be explained by special fibrous structures that connect the round window with the entrance of the aqueduct. It was also found that the equilibrium inner ear pressure depends on middle ear pressure, indicating that the aqueduct does not connect the inner ear with a cavity with constant pressure.
Asunto(s)
Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Líquidos Laberínticos/fisiología , Modelos Biológicos , Ventana Redonda/fisiología , Animales , Cobayas , PresiónRESUMEN
Inner ear fluid pressure was measured during 6.25 mHz square wave middle ear pressure manipulation, with a perforated tympanic membrane. After a negative-going middle ear pressure change the calculated flow resistance of the inner ear pressure release routes (mainly the cochlear aqueduct) was approximately constant, with a value of 12 Pa s/nl (averaged over two ears), when values for the inner ear window compliance are taken from the literature. After a positive-going middle ear pressure change the calculated flow resistance changed with round window position and with the pressure difference across the cochlear aqueduct. It reached an average maximum value of 114 Pa s/nl. The change of flow resistance during inner ear pressure variation can be explained by a permeability change of the cochlear aqueduct, caused by a change of structures filling the aqueduct and its entrance in scala tympani.
Asunto(s)
Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Oído Interno/fisiología , Perilinfa/fisiología , Animales , Cobayas , Modelos Biológicos , Presión , Ventana Redonda/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Inner ear pressure was measured in scala tympani with a micropipette during square wave pressure manipulation of the intracranial compartment and, subsequently, of the external ear canal (EEC) in the same guinea pig. As expected, the combination of the cochlear aqueduct and the inner ear behaves as a low-pass filtering system for intracranial pressure manipulation and as a complementary high-pass system for ear canal pressure manipulation. Time constants for pressure equalization were in the order of seconds and depended on the direction of flow through the cochlear aqueduct. Pressure equalization curves could not be fitted to a single exponential function; more complicated functions were needed for good fits, showing that the pressure equalization process is nonlinear. This means that the flow resistance of the cochlear aqueduct and/or the compliance of the cochlear windows is not constant, which is in accordance with a flow-direction dependent resistance of the cochlear aqueduct. An explanation for this can be found in the special structure of the periotic duct inside the aqueduct.
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Conducto Auditivo Externo/fisiología , Oído Interno/fisiología , Presión Intracraneal/fisiología , Animales , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Femenino , Cobayas , Presión Hidrostática , Perilinfa/fisiología , PresiónRESUMEN
The inner ear fluid pressure of guinea pigs was measured during square wave middle ear cavity pressure variation. Time constants were derived for the slopes of the inner ear pressure recovery curves after middle ear pressure change. A "single exponential" function did not fit well and therefore more complicated functions were used for this purpose. For middle ear pressure increasing from zero to a few centimetres of water, returning to zero again, decreasing from zero to minus a few centimetres of water and then returning to zero again, time constants for the inner ear pressure recovery curves were on average 15.0, 8.6, 2.5 and 2.5 s, respectively. The results could not be described using a linear model with constant window membrane compliance and cochlear aqueduct flow resistance. A possible explanation for the large difference in time constants for positive or negative middle ear pressure changes is a dependence on aqueduct flow resistance or round window membrane position.
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Oído Interno/fisiología , Oído Medio/fisiología , Animales , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Femenino , Cobayas , Líquidos Laberínticos/fisiología , Presión , Ventana Redonda/fisiología , TiempoRESUMEN
Previous studies have shown that pressure changes in the cerebrospinal fluid compartment are transmitted to the inner ear. The main route for pressure transfer is the cochlear aqueduct. about which little is known with regard to its dynamic properties. In the present study, sudden intracranial pressure changes (square waves and short pulses) were created in guinea pigs by means of an electronically controlled infusion system. Simultaneously with pressure manipulation, hydrostatic pressure was monitored in both the peridural space and the perilymphatic compartment of the inner ear. The onset of an inner ear pressure change following manipulation of intracranial pressure was immediate. Inner ear pressure increased or decreased without a measurable time lag, and equalized within a few seconds. During square wave intracranial pressure manipulation, inner ear pressure equalized somewhat more slowly after pressure increase than after pressure decrease. To a first approximation, the pressure equalization curves for the inner ear could be fitted with a single exponential function, rising or falling with a time constant in the range 1-3 s, and the system can be described as a low-pass filter composed of a constant compliance and a constant flow resistance. Detailed analysis, however, showed small deviations from a purely exponential recovery process. With a more complicated (non-linear) model, almost perfect fits to the inner ear pressure equalization curves could be obtained. This non-linearity may be a consequence of the dependence of the compliance and, or flow resistance on pressure.
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Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Presión Intracraneal/fisiología , Animales , Femenino , Cobayas , Perilinfa/fisiología , Factores de TiempoRESUMEN
Stimulation of the cochlea with sinusoidal current results in the production of an otoacoustic emission at the primary frequency of the stimulus current. In this study we test the hypothesis that the wide frequency response from round window (RW) stimulation is due to the involvement of a relatively large spatial segment of the organ of Corti. Tonotopically organized group delays would be evident from perilymphatic electrode locations that restrict the spatial extent of hair cell stimulation. Monopolar and bipolar-paired stimulus electrodes were placed in perilymphatic areas of the first or third cochlear turns and the electrically evoked otoacoustic emissions (EEOAE) produced by these electrodes were compared to that from the RW monopolar electrode in the anesthetized guinea pig. Current stimuli of 35 microA RMS were swept across the frequency range between 60 Hz and 100 kHz. The EEOAE was measured using a microphone coupled to the ear canal. It was found that the bandwidth of EEOAEs from RW stimulation extended to at least 40 kHz and was a relatively insensitive to electrode location on the RW. The group delay of the EEOAE from stimulation at the RW membrane (corrected to stapes motion) was about 53 micros. First and third turn stimulations from electrode placements in perilymph near the bony wall of cochlea yielded narrower band EEOAE magnitude spectra but which had the same short group delays as for RW stimulation. A confined current (from a bipolar electrode pair) applied close to the basilar membrane (BM) in the first turn produced the narrowest frequency-band magnitude emissions and a mean corrected group delay of 176 micros for a location approximately 3 mm from the high frequency end of the BM (corresponding to about the 18 kHz best frequency location). Bipolar electrodes in the third turn scala tympani produced low pass EEOAE magnitude functions with corrected group delays ranging between approximately 0.3 and 1 ms. The average phase slopes did not change with altered cochlear sensitivity and postmortem. These data indicate that the EEOAE from RW stimulation is the summed response from a wide-tonotopic distribution of outer hair cells. A preliminary model study indicates that short time delayed emissions are the result of a large spatial distribution of current applied to perilymphatic locations possibly giving rise to "wave-fixed" emissions.
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Cóclea/fisiología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Emisiones Otoacústicas Espontáneas/fisiología , Animales , Estimulación Eléctrica/métodos , Electrodos , Cobayas , Ventana Redonda/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Inner ear pressure reflects intracranial pressure (ICP) primarily because of the direct communication of perilymph and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) through the cochlear aqueduct (CA). The MMS-10 tympanic displacement analyser (TDA) is a relatively new device for measuring perilymphatic pressure non-invasively, and thereby also indirectly measuring intracranial pressure. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the use of the TDA in a daily clinical setting. Other aims were to investigate changes in perilymphatic pressure from sitting to lying position in healthy volunteers in two age groups (mean age: 33 years and 50 years) and to compare the patency of the CA in these groups using the MMS-10 TDA. Tympanic membrane displacement (TMD) analyses were performed in the test subjects initially twice in sitting position (test-retest) and then in sitting and supine positions. We found that the MMS-10 TDA is easy to use, and that it gives reproducible values in repeated tests, but with large inter-subject differences. The TMD test showed curves, which, in the whole test group, were more negative in supine position, in accordance with an increasing intracranial and inner ear pressure when lying down. The change from sitting to lying position was larger in the younger group than in the older group. In 11% of the younger group (males) and in 30% of the older group (females), the CA was considered to be non-patent, although the difference was not statistically significant. However, the finding is in keeping with the hypothesis of a greater proportion of patent CA in younger than in older individuals.
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Presión Intracraneal/fisiología , Postura , Membrana Timpánica/fisiología , Adulto , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Manometría/instrumentación , Persona de Mediana Edad , Perilinfa/fisiología , Presión , Reflejo Acústico/fisiología , Estapedio/fisiología , Posición SupinaRESUMEN
Cochlear gene transfer is a promising new approach for inner ear therapy. Previous studies have demonstrated hair cell protection with cochlear gene transfer not only in the inoculated, but also in the uninoculated ear. To characterize the kinetics of viral spread, we investigated the extent of transgene expression in the contralateral (uninoculated) cochlea after unilateral adenoviral cochlear gene transfer. We used a lacZ reporter gene vector, and demonstrated spread of the adenovirus into the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) after cochlear inoculation of 25 microl viral vector. Direct virus application into the CSF resulted in transduction of both cochleae, whereas virus inoculation into the bloodstream did not. The cochlear aqueduct was identified as the most likely route of virus spread to the contralateral cochlea. These data enhance our understanding of the kinetics of virus-mediated transgene expression in the inner ear, and assist in the development of clinical applications for inner ear gene therapy. Our results showed a functional communication between the CSF and the perilymphatic space of the inner ear, that is not only of importance for otological gene transfer, but also for CNS gene transfer. Gene Therapy (2000) 7, 377-383.
Asunto(s)
Adenoviridae/genética , Cóclea/fisiología , Técnicas de Transferencia de Gen , Animales , Líquido Cefalorraquídeo/fisiología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Oído Medio/fisiología , Vectores Genéticos/genética , Cobayas , Operón Lac/genética , Transducción Genética/genéticaRESUMEN
Hypobaric effects on the perilymph pressure were investigated in 18 cats. The perilymph, tympanic cavity, cerebrospinal fluid, and systemic and ambient pressure changes were continuously recorded relative to the atmospheric pressure. The pressure equilibration of the eustachian tube and the cochlear aqueduct was studied, as well as the effects of blocking these channels. During ascent, the physiologic opening of the eustachian tube reduced the pressure gradients across the tympanic membrane. The patent cochlear aqueduct equilibrated perilymph pressure to cerebrospinal fluid compartment levels with a considerable pressure gradient across the oval and round windows. With the aqueduct blocked, the pressure decrease within the labyrinth and tympanic cavities was limited, resulting in large pressure gradients toward the chamber and the cerebrospinal fluid compartments, respectively. We conclude that closed cavities with limited pressure release capacities are the cause of the pressure gradients. The strain exerted by these pressure gradients is potentially harmful to the ear.
Asunto(s)
Presión Atmosférica , Oído Interno/fisiología , Animales , Gatos , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Trompa Auditiva/fisiología , Presión Hidrostática , Manometría , Valores de ReferenciaRESUMEN
There is great variation in published descriptions of the shape, size, and patency of the human cochlear aqueduct. The first part of this paper describes the anatomy of the normal human cochlear aqueduct as determined from a study of 101 temporal bones. Nineteen bones aged 0-1 years and approximately 10 bones per decade of life until age 100 years were examined. The aqueduct was found to have a funnel shaped aperture at the cranial end with a dural sheath extending into it for a varying distance. The rest of the aqueduct was filled with a meshwork of loose connective tissue, often with a central lumen within it. Four types of patencies were noted: central lumen patent throughout length of aqueduct (34%), lumen filled with loose connective tissue (59%), lumen occluded by bone (4%), and obliteration of the aqueduct (3%). The mean value (+/- SD) of the narrowest portion was 138 (+/- 58) microns which occurred 200-300 microns from the cochlear end of the aqueduct. There was no correlation between age and narrowest diameter, or between age and category of patency. In the second part of this paper, we propose quantitative models of aqueduct function, based on measurements of ductal dimensions and known acoustical properties of the inner ear. Our model analyses suggest that in normal ears, the aqueduct (1) cannot support fluid flows large enough to explain stapedectomy gushers, (2) does filter out cardiac- and respiration-induced pulses in CSF and prevents them from affecting cochlear function, and (3) has little effect on normal ossicular transmission of sound for frequencies above 20 Hz. In pathological ears, such as those with ossicular disruption or after a type IV tympanoplasty, a patent aqueduct might affect hearing for frequencies below 150 Hz.
Asunto(s)
Acueducto Coclear/anatomía & histología , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Acústica , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Líquido Cefalorraquídeo/fisiología , Niño , Preescolar , Frecuencia Cardíaca/fisiología , Humanos , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Líquidos Laberínticos/fisiología , Laberintitis/etiología , Meningitis Bacterianas/complicaciones , Persona de Mediana Edad , Modelos Biológicos , Presión , Respiración/fisiología , Ventana Redonda/fisiología , Estribo/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Variations in cephalo-rachidian fluid pressure can be transmitted to the middle ear through the cochlear aqueduct (CA). This gives us a non-invasive manner to evaluate any changes in fluid pressure by measuring middle ear impedance (impedancemetry). The present study compared two indirect methods for measuring intracranial pressure: a) impedancemetry during evoked jugulo-tympanic reflex (JTR) and b) study of the tympanic membrane (TM) fine motility using a MMS-10 analyzer. The latter is a new procedure involving the indirect evaluation of the fluid pressure. In fact, when the CA is open the labyrinthine fluid pressure is transmitted to the oval window, the stapes platina and, finally, to the tympanic membrane where it can be measured with an MMS-10 unit. This equipment can measure nanoliter shifts in the TM. In particular, comparison between the clinostatic and orthostatic tympanic motility measurements enable one to establish whether the CA is patent or not. In the present study 15 subjects were examined using both a) impedancemetry during jugular compression and b) analysis of the TM shift using an MMS-10 unit. In 14 of the 15 cases there was good correlation between the data obtained using both methods: in all but one case it proved possible to record a JTR-induced variation in impedance whenever the MMS-10 indicated that the CA was open. The results suggest that, in clinical practice, the two methods can be used in parallel for non-invasive monitoring of variations in intracranial pressure in patients with neurological involvement. On the other hand, in the E.N.T. field these techniques could be used to study inner ear pathologies causing dynamic alterations of the endolabyrinth fluids (endolymphatic hydrops, labyrinthine fistula).
Asunto(s)
Pruebas de Impedancia Acústica , Acueducto Coclear/fisiología , Pruebas de Impedancia Acústica/métodos , Adulto , Líquido Cefalorraquídeo/fisiología , Femenino , Humanos , Presión Intracraneal , Líquidos Laberínticos/fisiología , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Reflejo/fisiología , Membrana Timpánica/fisiologíaRESUMEN
The responses of primary vestibular neurons and perilymphatic pressure changes to middle ear pressure were investigated in guinea pigs with obstructed vestibular or cochlear aqueduct (closed VA or closed CA group) in order to clarify the influence of VA and CA on pressure-induced vestibular response. Although the neural response rates and the amount of perilymphatic pressure change in the closed VA group resembled those in the control group, these values in the closed CA group were higher than in the control group. Patency of the CA had a more significant effect on the vestibular response to middle ear pressure change than patency of the VA.