Kemp D T
Ciba Found Symp. 1981;85:54-81. doi: 10.1002/9780470720677.ch5.
Spontaneous oscillatory vibrations within the cochlea exist in many normal ears and can become audible, providing one source of mild tonal tinnitus. These vibrations have been studied experimentally using an acoustic ear-canal recording technique. The spontaneous oscillations are directly related to stimulated acoustic emissions (cochlear echoes). They arise because of the development of strong cochlear resonances by a feedback process. With the aid of cochlear resonance theory the bandwidths of spontaneous cochlear mechanical activity can be used to determine intracochlear broad-band noise levels. Ways of modifying cochlear mechanical activity have been explored. Activity can be increased or decreased by changes in middle-ear mobility or by brief overstimulation. In the latter case a biphasic recovery cycle has been identified which also seems to be relevant to temporary noise-induced tinnitus and temporary threshold shift. Tinnitus due to spontaneous cochlear vibrations is here called cochlear mechanical tinnitus. Identification criteria are given for such tinnitus involving cochlear mechanical resonance. This form is mild and likely to be found in normally hearing people with tinnitus and in those with only middle-ear disorders. It is speculated that localized oscillation of mechanically isolated cochlear elements could induce much higher levels of tinnitus without producing any externally detectable vibration.
许多正常耳朵的耳蜗内存在自发振荡性振动，这种振动可被听到，是轻度音调性耳鸣的一个来源。已使用外耳道声学记录技术对这些振动进行了实验研究。自发振荡与诱发的声发射（耳蜗回声）直接相关。它们是通过反馈过程产生强烈的耳蜗共振而出现的。借助耳蜗共振理论，自发耳蜗机械活动的带宽可用于确定耳蜗内的宽带噪声水平。人们已经探索了改变耳蜗机械活动的方法。中耳活动度的改变或短暂的过度刺激可使活动增加或减少。在后一种情况下，已确定了一个双相恢复周期，这似乎也与暂时性噪声性耳鸣和暂时性阈移有关。由自发耳蜗振动引起的耳鸣在此称为耳蜗机械性耳鸣。给出了涉及耳蜗机械共振的此类耳鸣的识别标准。这种形式的耳鸣较为轻微，可能在有耳鸣的正常听力人群以及仅患有中耳疾病的人群中出现。据推测，机械隔离的耳蜗元件的局部振荡可能会诱发更高水平的耳鸣，而不会产生任何外部可检测到的振动。
