Characterizing bone density pattern and porosity in the human ossicular chain using synchrotron microtomography.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_0CF94E8C1DCD
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Characterizing bone density pattern and porosity in the human ossicular chain using synchrotron microtomography.
Journal
Scientific reports
Author(s)
Ivanovic A., Schalbetter F., Schmeltz M., Wimmer W., Caversaccio M., Stampanoni M., Bonnin A., Anschuetz L.
ISSN
2045-2322 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
2045-2322
Publication state
Published
Issued date
09/08/2024
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
14
Number
1
Pages
18498
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article
Publication Status: epublish
Abstract
The auditory ossicles amplify and transmit sound from the environment to the inner ear. The distribution of bone mineral density is crucial for the proper functioning of sound transmission as the ossicles are suspended in an air-filled chamber. However, little is known about the distribution of bone mineral density along the human ossicular chain and within individual ossicles. To investigate this, we analyzed fresh-frozen human specimens using synchrotron-based phase-contrast microtomography. In addition, we analyzed the volume and porosity of the ossicles. The porosity for the auditory ossicles lies, on average, between 1.92% and 9.85%. The average volume for the mallei is 13.85 ± 2.15 mm <sup>3</sup> , for the incudes 17.62 ± 4.05 mm <sup>3</sup> and 1.24 ± 0.29 mm <sup>3</sup> for the stapedes. The bone density distribution showed a similar pattern through all samples. In particular, we found high bone mineralization spots on the anterior crus of the stapes, its footplate, and along areas that are crucial for the transmission of sound. We could also see a correlation between low bone mineral density and holey areas where the bone is only very thin or missing. Our study identified a similar pattern of bone density distribution within all samples: regions exposed to lower forces generally show higher bone density. Further, we observed that the stapes shows high bone mineral density along the anterior crus and its footplate, which may indicate its importance in transmitting sound waves to the inner ear.
Keywords
Humans, Bone Density, Ear Ossicles/diagnostic imaging, Ear Ossicles/physiology, Ear Ossicles/anatomy & histology, X-Ray Microtomography/methods, Synchrotrons, Porosity, Female, Aged, Male, Middle Aged, Stapes/physiology, Stapes/diagnostic imaging
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
19/08/2024 7:57
Last modification date
29/10/2024 7:21
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