Effect of healed tympanic membrane perforations on umbo velocity in the rat

Heterodyne laser interferometry was used to measure tympanic membrane (TM) velocity at the umbo during acoustic stimulation in 2 groups of rats. The control group had a normal TM, while in the other group the TM was perforated and then allowed to heal for at least 28 days. Umbo velocity functions for constant sound pressure level stimuli were obtained for test tones between 0.3 and 40.0 kHz in each animal. The results revealed that velocity was the same in the control and healed TMs below 3.0 kHz. Above 5.0 kHz, the velocity response in the healed ear was between 3 and 12 dB smaller than in the control ears. Histologic evaluation of the healed perforation revealed a thick fibrous reaction between the epidermal and lamina propria layers. The results indicated that the added mass of the scar tissue changed the middle- and high-frequency TM responses.