What are the bones of the ears

The human body is much more complex than we can think at first and, a good example of it, we find it in certain organs that have a great complexity both in its conformation and in its functions. This is what happens with the ear, a part of the human body formed by different elements that, in addition to allowing to hear and perceive sounds, also plays a fundamental role in maintaining balance.

One of the most interesting aspects of the ear is found in the so-called bones of the ear, which are responsible for transmitting vibrations to the inner ear and, moreover, have the characteristic of being the smallest bones of the human body. If you want to know what are the bones of the ears and know many other curiosities of this part of the body, read on and we'll tell you.

How is the ear composed?

One could speak of hearing as the system that allows us to capture external vibrations and transform them into signals that can be interpreted by our brain. That is, it is the part of the body that allows us to hear. It is a fairly complex system, which has evolved over millions of years to become what it is today. The ear can be divided into three parts: external ear, middle ear and inner ear.

The outer ear, one of the parts of the ear

The outer ear is composed of the auricula pavilion r (that is, the ear) and the external auditory canal. This tube measures just over two centimeters, and is the one that connects the outside of the ear with the eardrum. In addition, I posed hair and glands that secrete cerumen, which allows to protect the eardrum from any type of threat or dangerous agent that could come from outside, from dust and dirt, to germs of any kind.

Middle ear

The middle ear is the one that is between the eardrum and the commonly called snail (which already belongs to the inner ear). After the eardrum, is where we find the tympanic cavity, which is a space close to the skull where the chain of bones of the ear, in addition to the Eustachian tube, which connects this cavity with the pharynx.

The inner ear, the deepest part of the ear

Finally, the inner ear is the part of the ear that is found from what is commonly called the ear snail . This structure is named after its appearance similar to the shell of this animal, and is responsible for receiving the vibrations transmitted by the bone chain of the ears and regulating much of the balance. In addition, in the inner ear, we also find the so-called organ of Corti, which is responsible for transforming the vibrations into nerve signals that can be interpreted by brain neurons when they are sent to this organ.

List with the bones of the ear

As you can see, although the bones of the ear play a major role in the transmission of vibrations, they are far from being the largest part of the ear. In fact, the bones of the ear are the three smallest bones that can be found in the human being, having a total size of the chain they form that does not exceed 18 millimeters away. So, as you can see, they are really very small.

Hammer

The hammer is the first of the bones of the ear. It is in contact with the eardrum, which makes it the outermost bone of the three. It receives its name by its shape, similar to that of a hammer.

Anvil

The anvil is the second of the bones of the ear, and is in the middle of the chain of these bones, just between the hammer bone and the stapes bone. It has a shape that resembles an anvil because it consists of a main body and two species of fins, which has earned him this name.

Stirrup

Finally, the abutment is the last of the bones of the ear bone chain and the innermost of all. It receives its name again by the form that it has, that remembers to a stirrup of those that are used by the horsemen at the time of riding a horse. This bone connects the anvil with the oval window of the inner ear, so it is also the innermost point of the middle ear.

The importance of the eardrum when it comes to protecting the bones of the ear

The bones of the ear are responsible for transmitting the vibrations from the outside to the inner ear. However, we must also know that it is a delicate structure. This is one of the reasons that causes us to have eardrums at the end of the auditory canal, since they allow to cushion the vibrations and protect the chain of the bones of the ear.

In fact, those who suffer perforation in the eardrum should take additional protective measures if they do not want to damage the bone chain. The most common of all is bathing with earplugs. This is because, due to the pressure of the water, if it comes to exert force on the structure of the bones of the ear, it could damage it completely, which would lead to partial or even total deafness.

In people with healthy eardrum, this acts as a natural barrier against water. But, in the case of those people who suffer from perforation of the eardrum, it is necessary to take additional security measures such as the use of earplugs to protect their middle ear.