Virtual Reconstruction of Impaired Human Hearing

The hearing organ, a marvelous and highly developed part in the human body provides a very important sense in the daily life. In the middle ear there are pure mechanical mechanisms of sound transfer whereas in the inner ear a complex transduction from mechanical entities via chemical processes to electrical stimulation of hearing nerves take place. In case of hearing loss due to diseases or accidents a mechanical reconstruction has to be performed by inserting passive or active implants into the middle ear. Due to the complex mechanical structure of the middle ear with its spatially oriented ligaments, active muscles and the nonlinear cochlea amplifier of the inner ear, classical one—dimensional models are not sufficient to describe the dynamical behavior of the hearing organ. This interdisciplinary project together with physicians is focused on appropriate models to reduce the trial and test series on living patients by simulation.