Embryology of Ear &

Temporal Bone

PRESENTER: HABEN MD ORL-HNS-R-1

MODERATOR: DR. BILEN OTOLOGY FELLOW
Out line
 Auricular development
 EAC development
 Tympanic membrane development
 Middle ear development
 Development of the ossicles
 Development of facial nerve
 Development of inner ear
 Development of temporal bone
 Auricular Development

Its development begins later than do other

components of the ear
From the 5th week of gestation (ectodermal hillocks)
 1st branchial (mandibular) arch : hillocks 1, 2, and 3
 2nd branchial (hyoid) arch : hillocks 4, 5, and 6
By the 8th wk, the auricle has an identifiable
structure
 The auricle achieves adult form by approx 18 wks
 continues to grow in childhood with changes continuing into
late adult life

 Contributions of the hillocks to the adult form can be

recognized:
 Hillock 1; tragus
 Hillock 2; crus helicis
 Hillock 3; ascending helix

 Hillock 4; horizontal helix, upper portion of scapha, and

antihelix

 Hillock 5; descending helix, middle portion of the scapha, and

antihelix

 Hillock 6; antitragus and inferior aspect of the helix

 External Auditory Canal development

 Begins to form in the 4th wk of from the 1st branchial cleft

(widens)
 Ectoderm proliferates to form a pit (forerunner of outer portion of
EAC)

 canalization of outer part of EAC is complete by about 12 wk of

gestation, at which time the canal fills with epithelial tissue (meatal
plug)

 Comes into apposition with the endoderm of the 1st pharyngeal pouch

 Mesenchymal growth separates the cleft and the pouch

 Deep portion of EAC is apparent from the 8th wk

 At approx 28 wks' gestation, the epithelial core (precursor of bony EAC) has
canalized from the medial to the lateral aspect
 Tympanic Membrane development

Trilaminar origin
 Epidermal layer: ectoderm of the 1st branchial cleft
 Mucosal layer: endoderm of the 1st pharyngeal pouch
 Fibrous layer: neural crest mesenchyme with cephalic
mesoderm

almost horizontal initially but gradually lie in the

adult position at approx 3 yrs of age

Tympanic ring bone

 derived from neural crest mesenchyme
 begins to ossify at approx 3 months
 Middle Ear Cavity development

 Develop from the expanding

terminal end of the 1st
pharyngeal pouch
(endoderm) with a small
contribution from the 2nd
pharyngeal pouch

 The tubotympanic recess is

apparent at 4th wk of gestation
 Remains a slit like structure until the
5th month but begins to expand till it
encloses the ossicles by the 8th month
 Continues from the epitympanum into
the antrum begins at 22 wks and is
complete at birth
Formation of the mastoid air cell system begins late in
fetal life; the antrum is present at birth, and continues
throughout childhood

The pattern and extent of pneumatization are highly

variable
 Pneumatization of the petrous pyramid, present in 30% of
temporal bones, does not begin until the 3rd year of life

Mastoid tip (not developed at birth) expands through

the tractional effect of the SCM attachment
 Development of ossicles

 Ossicles begun to develop at the 5th and 6th week of GA

 Main source is the neural crest mesenchyme
 1st branchial arch (mandibular process)
 Head of the malleus (Meckel cartilage)
 Body and short process of the incus (Meckel cartilage)
 CN V3
 Mandible

 2nd branchial arches (Reichert cartilage)

 Long process of the incus
 Handle of the malleus
 Stapes superstructure
 Tympanic surface of the stapes footplate
 CN VII
Malleus and incus are first formed as cartilaginous
models from the 6th wk of gestation
 begin to ossify in wk 16, and almost complete by wk 30

The stapes appears slightly before the malleus and

incus and begin to ossify by 16th wk
 It is initially ring shaped and penetrated by the stapedial
artery, the artery of the second arch, which regresses

 By 10 weeks, the stapes has already started to assume the

familiar stirrup shape
 Development of the Facial Nerve

Facioacoustic primordium appears in the 3rd wk

 Split into distinct CN VII and CN VIII by the 5th wk

CN VII supplies second arch structures, in particular

the muscles of facial expression

 Chorda tympani: appears in the 4th wk

 Greater superficial petrosal nerve appears in the 6th week

 Nerve to the stapedius is identifiable by the 7th wk

 Nervus intermedius: gives secretomotor and special sensation
fibers by the 7th wk
 1st genu can be considered the result of the nerve's being pushed
forward by the developing otic capsule

 The fallopian canal is derived from the mesoderm of the otic

capsule
 More distally, the fallopian canal is formed partly by the Reichert cartilage

 2nd genu is formed in the middle ear by the 10th week and is
more anterior to external and middle ear than in adults

 By week 26, partial closure of the fallopian canal by bone is

found
 lie in a position comparable with that in adults
In atretic ears, the facial nerve is abnormal in as many as
50% of cases
 lies more anteriorly and superficially in the lateral temporal bone
 Anterior displacement of the nerve at the 6-week stage can prevent
the developing stapes from coming into contact with the otic capsule

Dehiscence of the fallopian canal is common

enough for it to be considered a normal variant, present
in approximately 25% of temporal bones

 The most common site is tympanic segment over the oval

window, followed by the geniculate ganglion and the mastoid
segment
 Development of the Inner Ear

Membranous Labyrinth
 is accordingly the first part to develop
Otic placode : thickening of ectoderm at the
cephalic end of the embryo by the 3rd wk of
gestation
 in contact with hindbrain portion of the closing neural tube
Otocyst or otic vesicle is formed
by invagination of the otic placode
to become a pit and a closed sac
 Precursor of the membranous labyrinth
 lengthens more than it widens
 Achieves adult form by the 10th wk and
adult size by 20 wks
 Otocyst: by the 5th wk
 Cranial portion becomes endolymphatic duct
 Caudal portion becomes the cochlear duct
 Intermediate portion is vestibular precursor that
develops in to the utriculosaccular area

 The vestibular portion begins to take shape

slightly before the cochlear portion,
phylogenetically
From the utricular part of
the vestibular pouch, three
outpocketings appear which
develop into SCC

 Superior canal is completed

1st (6th wk) ,posterior canal is
next to be completed, and the
lateral canal is last

 Utricle and saccule start to

develop in the 6th wk and form
the utriculosaccular duct
Cochlear duct also
begins to grow from the
saccule in the 6th wk

 ductus reuniens is visible

by the 8th wk

 grows rapidly, having

 1.5 turns at 8 wks
 full 2.5 turns at 10 wks
 full length at about 20
weeks
The sensory epithelia of the vestibular system are
derived from the ectodermal epithelium of the
otocyst

 Two maculae: develop in the 7th wk by means of intense

proliferation of the epithelium accompanied by cell
differentiation

 Three cristae: distinguishable at 8 wks and have reached

adult form at 23 wks
 Organ of Corti in the cochlea
 The sensory epithelium of the cochlea begins to develop in the 7th
wk and organizes in to two ridges

 Inner ridge (larger): differentiates into the inner hair cells and tectorial
membrane , 11th wk

 Outer ridge(smaller): differentiates into the outer hair cells

 Inner hair cells appear marginally before the outer hair cells at the same
position along the basilar membrane

 midbasal region of the cochlea and moves toward the apex

 maturation of the base preceding that of the apex by 1-2 wks

 although the most basal portion of the cochlear lags slightly behind the midbasal
portion
The shape of the cochlear duct changes starting
at approx wk 12 from oval to triangular, the
changes 1st happening in the basal turn

The endolymphatic duct and sac are the only

parts of the inner ear that continue to grow into the
3rd TM
 Full size is not attained until adulthood
 Development of Innervation of the Membranous Labyrinth

Vestibulocochlear ganglia arise from ectoderm

of the primitive otocyst
 Superior division: fibers pass to innervate the superior
and lateral ampullae of the SCC and the utricle
 Inferior division : fibers to the posterior ampulla and the
saccule

 Nerve fibers grow to enter the sensory epithelium at 9th wk

 Synaptic connections are identifiable at 11th wk

 The inner hair cells are innervated before the outer hair cells;
afferent innervation precedes efferent innervation, and the
basal turn precedes the apex in development
 Development of the Osseous Labyrinth

 Vascular precartilage
originates from cephalic
mesoderm with small
contribution from neural crest
cells by the 8th wk

 Develops vacuoles that coalesce to

form the perilymphatic space
 The perilymphatic space is completed by
week 24

 Also contributes to the

 Basilar membrane,
 Reissner membrane
 stria vascularis
 Development of the Otic Capsule

Precartilaginous precursor appears in the 7th

wk arising from cephalic mesoderm

The developing labyrinth is surrounded by an

enlarging cartilaginous model from 8-16th wk

 Ossifies in three layers over a 7-wk period from a total of 14

centers

 Oval (vestibular) window is formed 9th wk

 Round (tympanic) window forms adjacent to the basal
turn of the cochlea
bony otic capsule achieves its adult size by
week 22
 Solidification is completed in the early postnatal stage

The vestibular aqueduct forms around the

endolymphatic duct and sac but is late in achieving
full ossification

 The length in a newborn infant is 3.5 mm; the average length

in an adult is 10 mm
 Maldevelopment

 Cochleosaccular (Scheibe`s) dysplasia: most common

histopathologic finding in congenital deafness
 Partially or completely missing organ of Corti typically
 Collapsed cochlear duct and saccule
 Degenerated stria vascularis
 Normal utricle and SCC (The normality can be explained in part by the earlier
development of the vestibular system)

 Complete membranous labyrinthine dysplasia (Bing-

Siebenmann) is rare and is the most severe membranous
abnormality

 Complete aplasia (Michel malformation): The most severe

abnormality,, is extremely rare and presumably is caused by failure of
the otic vesicle to develop
Dysplasia of SCC is 4x more common than aplasia
 LSCC is most commonly affected because it develops later
 Occurs in approx 40% of ears with osseous cochlear abnormalities
 Bilateral involvement with osseous inner ear deformities is the rule,
the same morphologic abnormality occurring in both ears

An enlarged vestibular aqueduct is the most

common radiologically detectable abnormality of the
inner ear and may be due to acquired or genetic influences

Of all the inner ear structures, the internal auditory canal
is most variable in size, length, and configuration
 Temporal bone embryology

Neural crest cells and mesenchyme of maxillary

process of 1st pharyngeal arch give rise to
 Squama ; at about 9th wk through membranous
ossification (from single center at the root of zygoma)
 zygomatic process begin membrane bone formation at 9th wk

 Tympanic part ; at about 9-10 wks

 Lateral aspect of the tegmen tympani begins to develop
from projection of the otic capsule (superior periotic process) by
the end of the 9th wk
 Medial part of the tegmen tympani consists of a fibrous
tissue plate
 Postauditory process of the squama extends to form
the anterosuperior portion of the mastoid process by 16 wk

 Petrous bone, composed of the cartilaginous otic capsule,

begins rapid ossification from multiple centers at about 20-
24th wk

 25 weeks-the floor of the middle ear develops, either

as an

 independent bone located between the pyramid and the tympanic ring
 bony lamellar projection of the petrous pyramid
29th week- the tympanic process of the
squama joins the antral segment of the periosteal
otic capsule to form the lateral wall of the
antrum

At term the ossification center of Reichert’s

cartilage (at the dorsal aspect) fuses with the otic
capsule to form
 styloid eminence in the floor of the tympanic cavity
 part of the distal segment of the bony fallopian canal
The external petrosquamous fissure is visible in the
newborn, but generally disappears by the 2nd yr of life

At birth the mastoid antrum is large with a thin shell of

bone

The mastoid process develops as a prominence on the

outer aspect of the petrous pyramid during the 1st yr of life
 As the mastoid grows, the antrum shrinks in relative size and assumes a
more medial position, as does the facial nerve

 Well developed by 3 years of age, does not achieve adult

configuration for several more years
 Reference

Head & Neck Surgery - Otolaryngology, 4th

Edition;Bailey, Byron J.; Johnson, Jonas T;Volume
2 ,chapter IX ,section 128 - Development of the Ear
Pages 1870 -1880

Langman`s medical embryology, 13th edition; chapter

17 pages 278-291, chapter 19 pages 343-351

The developing human, clinically oriented

embryology; Keith L.moore,8th edition Pages 431-438
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