How Hearing Works

The sense of natural hearing is a very fine-tuned, intricate process. To hear naturally, the whole sound sensing system must work right. If a part of the outer, middle, or inner ear is damaged or missing, a hearing loss may be present.

The ear has three sections:

Outer Ear
- Outer Ear: The ear consists of your external ear and ear canal. Sound is gathered from the environment and travels down the ear canal to the eardrum (tympanic membrane).
Middle Ear
- Middle Ear: The middle ear consists of the eardrum and three tiny bones. The bones are called the Malleus, Incus and the Stapes and are often referred to as the hammer, anvil and stirrup. Sound from the outer ear causes the eardrum to vibrate. The vibrations are then passed along the malleus, incus and stapes, to the inner ear.
Inner Ear
- Inner Ear: A part called the cochlea has tiny "hairs" that change sounds into signals. The signals travel on the hearing nerve to the brain. The brain interprets the signals as sound which creates the sense of hearing.