Morphological variations in human fetal ear ossicles-a study.

ABSTRACT

Aim: To study the morphological variation, if any, of the ear ossicles in the human fetuses and use of the study in medical applications. Materials and Methods: This study was performed on 100 sets of middle ear ossicles, each set consisting of Malleus, Incus and Stapes, which were taken from 50 fetal cadavers on either side. Observations All the three ossicles showed variations in their morphology and more so in the stapes. Discussion: There are few studies in the literature on individual differences in these ossicles and these studies were on either adult or different species. Conclusion: the ear ossicles of the destitute human fetuses can be used as homografts to replace eroded adult middle ear ossicles.