3D finite element modeling of earplug-induced occlusion effect in the human ear

IF 1.7 4区医学 Q3 ENGINEERING, BIOMEDICAL

Medical Engineering & Physics Pub Date : 2024-06-10 DOI:10.1016/j.medengphy.2024.104192

John J. Bradshaw , Marcus A. Brown , Alexander G. Bien , Rong Z. Gan

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Poor utilization of earplugs among military personnel may be due to discomfort caused by the occlusion effect (OE). The OE occurs when an earplug occludes the ear canal, thereby changing bone conduction (BC) hearing and amplifying physiological noises from the wearer. There is a need to understand and reduce the OE in the human ear. A 3D finite element model of the human ear including a 3-chambered spiral cochlea was employed to simulate the OE caused by foam and aerogel earplugs. 90 dB sound pressure was applied at the ear canal entrance and BC sound was applied as vibration of the canal bony wall. The model reported the ear canal pressure and the displacements of the stapes footplate and cochlear basilar membrane with and without earplugs. Without BC stimulation, the foam earplug showed a greater pressure attenuation than the aerogel earplug. However, the foam earplug results were more affected by BC stimulation, with a maximum sound pressure increase of 34 dB, compared to the 21.0 dB increase with the aerogel earplug. The aerogel earplug's lower OE demonstrates its promise as an earplug material. Future work with this model will examine BC sound transmission in the cochlea.

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耳塞诱发人耳闭塞效应的三维有限元建模

军人对耳塞使用率低的原因可能是闭塞效应（OE）造成的不适。当耳塞堵塞耳道，从而改变骨传导（BC）听力并放大佩戴者的生理噪音时，就会产生 OE。有必要了解并减少人耳中的 OE。我们采用了包括三腔螺旋耳蜗在内的人耳三维有限元模型来模拟泡沫耳塞和气凝胶耳塞造成的 OE。在耳道入口处施加 90 dB 的声压，并以耳道骨壁振动的形式施加 BC 声。该模型报告了佩戴和不佩戴耳塞时的耳道压力以及镫骨脚板和耳蜗基底膜的位移。在没有 BC 刺激的情况下，泡沫耳塞比气凝胶耳塞显示出更大的压力衰减。不过，泡沫耳塞受 BC 刺激的影响更大，最大声压增加了 34 分贝，而气凝胶耳塞只增加了 21.0 分贝。气凝胶耳塞较低的 OE 值证明了其作为耳塞材料的前景。该模型的未来工作将研究BC声在耳蜗中的传播。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Medical Engineering & Physics 工程技术-工程：生物医学

CiteScore

4.30

自引率

4.50%

发文量

172

审稿时长

3.0 months

期刊介绍： Medical Engineering & Physics provides a forum for the publication of the latest developments in biomedical engineering, and reflects the essential multidisciplinary nature of the subject. The journal publishes in-depth critical reviews, scientific papers and technical notes. Our focus encompasses the application of the basic principles of physics and engineering to the development of medical devices and technology, with the ultimate aim of producing improvements in the quality of health care.Topics covered include biomechanics, biomaterials, mechanobiology, rehabilitation engineering, biomedical signal processing and medical device development. Medical Engineering & Physics aims to keep both engineers and clinicians abreast of the latest applications of technology to health care.