Malleus

Encyclopedia : M : MA : MAL : Malleus

Left malleus. A. From behind. B. From within. |- style="text-align: center;" class="hiddenStructure" | colspan="2" |
|- style="text-align: center; line-height: 1;" class="hiddenStructure" | colspan="2" |The right membrana tympani with the hammer and the chorda tympani, viewed from within, from behind, and from above. (Malleus visible at center.) |- class="hiddenStructure" |Latin |colspan="2"| |- class="hiddenStructure" | |colspan="2"|[subject #231 ] |- class="hiddenStructure" |Origins |colspan="2"| |- class="hiddenStructure" |Insertions |colspan="2"| |- class="hiddenStructure" |Articulations |colspan="2"| |- class="hiddenStructure" |MeSH |colspan="2"|[A09.246.397.247.524] |- class="hiddenStructure" |Dorlands/Elsevier |colspan="2"|[/] |}
The malleus or hammer is a hammer-shaped small bone or ossicle of the middle ear which connects with the incus and is attached to the inner surface of the eardrum. The word is Latin, and means 'hammer'.
It transmits the sound vibrations from the eardrum to the incus.
The malleus is unique to mammals, and evolved from a lower jaw bone in reptiles called the articular.

See also
Bone terminology
Terms for anatomical location
Bone: Malleus

Sensory system - Auditory system - [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit]
Outer ear: Pinna > Ear canal Middle ear: Eardrum | Ossicles (Malleus, Incus & Stapes) | Stapedius | Tensor tympani | Eustachian tube
Inner ear: Cochlea (Scala vestibuli, Scala media & Scala tympani) | Oval window | Helicotrema | Round window | Basilar membrane | Reissner's membrane | Organ of Corti | Hair cells | Stereocilia
Brain: Cochlear nerve^VIII → Cochlear nuclei → Superior olivary nuclei → Inferior colliculi → Medial geniculate nuclei → Primary auditory cortex

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