Anatomy of the Rat Middle Ear

Abstract

The rat is of value in otological research for many reasons. For instance, the middle ear structures are easily approachable. Recently a couple of studies in the rat have been published concerning the healing pattern of tympanic membrane perforations and mucosal changes following Eustachian tube blockade including the otitis media with effusion. Essential for the evaluation of these studies is a detailed knowledge of the rat anatomy. The present paper describes the anatomical landmarks of the rat middle ear as seen under the otomicroscope.