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The ear may be affected by disease, including infection and traumatic damage. Diseases of the ear may lead to hearing loss, tinnitus and balance disorders such as vertigo, although many of these conditions may also be affected by damage to the brain or neural pathways leading from the ear.
Proper function of the auditory system is required to able to sense, process, and understand sound from the surroundings. Difficulty in sensing, processing and understanding sound input has the potential to adversely impact an individual's ability to communicate, learn and effectively complete routine tasks on a daily basis.
The inner ear (internal ear, auris interna) is the innermost part of the vertebrate ear. In vertebrates , the inner ear is mainly responsible for sound detection and balance. [ 1 ] In mammals , it consists of the bony labyrinth , a hollow cavity in the temporal bone of the skull with a system of passages comprising two main functional parts: [ 2 ]
The auditory cortex takes part in the spectrotemporal, meaning involving time and frequency, analysis of the inputs passed on from the ear. The cortex then filters and passes on the information to the dual stream of speech processing. [5] The auditory cortex's function may help explain why particular brain damage leads to particular outcomes.
In addition, the vestibular system's function can be affected by tumours on the vestibulocochlear nerve, an infarct in the brain stem or in cortical regions related to the processing of vestibular signals, and cerebellar atrophy. When the vestibular system and the visual system deliver incongruous results, nausea often occurs.
Video showing how sounds make their way from the source to the brain. Hearing, or auditory perception, is the ability to perceive sounds through an organ, such as an ear, by detecting vibrations as periodic changes in the pressure of a surrounding medium. [1]
The Outer ear consists of the pinna or auricle (visible parts including ear lobes and concha), and the auditory meatus (the passageway for sound). The fundamental function of this part of the ear is to gather sound energy and deliver it to the eardrum. Resonances of the external ear selectively boost sound pressure with frequency in the range 2 ...
The cochlea is a portion of the inner ear that looks like a snail shell (cochlea is Greek for snail). [5] The cochlea receives sound in the form of vibrations, which cause the stereocilia to move. The stereocilia then convert these vibrations into nerve impulses which are taken up to the brain to be interpreted.