Cartilage conduction hearing

Shimokura, Ryota; Hosoi, Hiroshi; Nishimura, Tadashi; Yamanaka, Toshiaki; Levitt, Harry

doi:10.1121/1.4868372

Cited by 49 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Vibrations of the cartilaginous portion of the ear canal are relatively intense at low frequencies but drop off at high frequencies because of the greater attenuation of sound in cartilage at high frequencies. Similar results were also observed in the measurement of the sound in the ear canal using a probe microphone [14]. In the touching condition, while the sound pressure level in the ear canal was an average of 25.5 dB higher than in the non-touching condition, remarkable increase was observed in the low frequency range.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

“…However, the occlusion effect and the airborne sound from the earplug might influence the results. Shimokura et al [14] measured the sound in the ear canal using a probe microphone with a transducer touching and non-touching the entrance of the ear canal. In the touching condition, the sound pressure level in the ear canal was an average of 25.5 dB higher than in the non-touching condition.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cartilage Conduction Is Characterized by Vibrations of the Cartilaginous Portion of the Ear Canal

et al. 2015

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Cartilage conduction (CC) is a new form of sound transmission which is induced by a transducer being placed on the aural cartilage. Although the conventional forms of sound transmission to the cochlea are classified into air or bone conduction (AC or BC), previous study demonstrates that CC is not classified into AC or BC (Laryngoscope 124: 1214–1219). Next interesting issue is whether CC is a hybrid of AC and BC. Seven volunteers with normal hearing participated in this experiment. The threshold-shifts by water injection in the ear canal were measured. AC, BC, and CC thresholds at 0.5–4 kHz were measured in the 0%-, 40%-, and 80%-water injection conditions. In addition, CC thresholds were also measured for the 20%-, 60%-, 100%-, and overflowing-water injection conditions. The contributions of the vibrations of the cartilaginous portion were evaluated by the threshold-shifts. For AC and BC, the threshold-shifts by the water injection were 22.6–53.3 dB and within 14.9 dB at the frequency of 0.5–4 kHz, respectively. For CC, when the water was filled within the bony portion, the thresholds were elevated to the same degree as AC. When the water was additionally injected to reach the cartilaginous portion, the thresholds at 0.5 and 1 kHz dramatically decreased by 27.4 and 27.5 dB, respectively. In addition, despite blocking AC by the injected water, the CC thresholds in force level were remarkably lower than those for BC. The vibration of the cartilaginous portion contributes to the sound transmission, particularly in the low frequency range. Although the airborne sound is radiated into the ear canal in both BC and CC, the mechanism underlying its generation is different between them. CC generates airborne sound in the canal more efficiently than BC. The current findings suggest that CC is not a hybrid of AC and BC.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cartilage Conduction Is Characterized by Vibrations of the Cartilaginous Portion of the Ear Canal

et al. 2015

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“…As shown in Fig. 2, we assumed that there are three possible pathways for CC [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. The first possibility is a direct air pathway.…”

Section: Hypothesis: Three Possible Pathways In CCmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although our study showed that the cartilage-air pathway might be the dominant route for CC hearing, the cartilage-bone pathway remained as a possibility. Therefore, Shimokura et al [15] compared the cartilage-air and cartilage-bone pathways using a loudness-matching test. The CC transducer was placed at the left ear, and the loudness of the CC was determined by adjusting the airborne sound pressure from an insert earphone (Eartone 3A, 3M Company E-A-R), which they wore in the opposite ear.…”

Section: Evidence That CC Is Distinct From Ac or Bc Pathwaymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…After Hosoi discovered CC, we developed a piezoelectric bimorph type of transducer with a ring-shaped attachment dedicated to effectively vibrating the aural cartilage [11]. Since then, we have attempted to identify the specific characteristics of CC using the new transducer [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]. As the result of our studies, we have proposed that CC could be a third independent pathway.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cartilage conduction as the third pathway for sound transmission

et al. 2019

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It has been long considered that air and bone are the two major mediators that conduct sounds to the inner ear. In 2004, Hosoi found that vibration of aural cartilage, generated by placing gently a transducer on it, could create audible sound with the same level of clarity as air-and boneconduction sound. He thus proposed the term "cartilage conduction" for this concept. This research identified a third mediator for sound conduction to the inner ear. Hosoi also proposed the development of novel communication devices, such as hearing aids, telephones, etc. using his findings. For cartilage conduction, three sound pathways can be assumed. The transducer vibration may cause airborne sound which passes into the external auditory canal through the canal entrance (direct air pathway). Alternatively, the vibration at the cartilage may generate audible sound in the external auditory canal (cartilage-air pathway), or propagate directly to the inner ear through the skull bone (cartilage-bone pathway). A series of studies has illustrated that the cartilage-air pathway is dominant for hearing sensations in listeners with normal ears. The cartilage-bone pathway works for patients with bony aural atresia. A fourth pathway, the fibrotic-tissue pathway, is considered to act in the case of fibrotic aural atresia. In this review, we summarize this series of studies and discuss the nature of cartilage conduction.

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Sound Perception

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The Effects of Sound on People

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Cartilage conduction hearing

Cited by 49 publications

References 19 publications

Cartilage Conduction Is Characterized by Vibrations of the Cartilaginous Portion of the Ear Canal

Cartilage Conduction Is Characterized by Vibrations of the Cartilaginous Portion of the Ear Canal

Cartilage conduction as the third pathway for sound transmission

Sound Perception

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