Tympanic membrane retraction tensa. Tympanic membrane retraction is fairly common and has been observed in one quarter of a population of British school children. Retraction of both eardrums is less common than having a retraction in just one ear. It is more common in children with cleft palate. Tympanic membrane retraction also occurs in adults. Attempts have been made to categorise the extent of tympanic membrane retraction though the validity of these classifications is limited. The majority of tympanic membrane retractions do not cause any symptoms. Some cause hearing loss by restricting sound-induced vibrations of the eardrum. Permanent conductive hearing loss can be
Basilar membrane membrane is also the "base" for the sensory cells of hearing, the hair cells that are equipped with "Stereocilia". There are approximately 15,000 hair cells in each human ear (see figure). This function as base of the sensory cells gave the "basilar" membrane its name, and it is again present in all land vertebrates. Due to its location, the basilar membrane places the hair cells in a position where they are adjacent to both the endolymph and the perilymph, which is a precondition of hair cell function. A third, evolutionarily younger, function of the basilar membrane is strongly developed in