The stapedius stiffens the ossicular chain by pulling the stapes ( stirrup ) of the middle ear away from the oval window of the cochlea and the tensor tympani muscle stiffens the ossicular chain by loading the tympanic membrane when it pulls the malleus ( hammer ) in toward the middle ear.
22.
This is a problem which may be caused by genetic differences, stress or ill-health, or by abnormal responses in the tensor tympani ( tonic tensor tympani syndrome ) and stapedius muscles, which function in the normal acoustic reflex response that protects the inner ear from loud sounds.
23.
The "'acoustic reflex "'( also known as the stapedius reflex, middle-ear-muscles ( MEM ) reflex, attenuation reflex, or auditory reflex ) is an involuntary muscle contraction that occurs in the middle ear in response to high-intensity sound stimuli or when the person starts to vocalize.
