Nonlinear stiffness characteristics of the annular ligament.

The annular ligament provides a compliant connection of the stapes to the oval window. To estimate the stiffness characteristics of the annular ligament, human temporal bone measurements were conducted. A force was applied sequentially at several points on the stapes footplate leading to different patterns of displacement with different amounts of translational and rotational components. The spatial displacement of the stapes footplate was measured using a laser vibrometer. The experiments were performed on several stapes with dissected chain and the force was increased stepwise, resulting in load-deflection curves for each force application point. The annular ligament exhibited a progressive stiffening characteristic in combination with an inhomogeneous stiffness distribution. When a centric force, orientated in the lateral direction, was applied to the stapes footplate, the stapes head moved laterally and in the posterior-inferior direction. Based on the load-deflection curves, a mechanical model of the annular ligament was derived. The mathematical representation of the compliance of the annular ligament results in a stiffness matrix with a nonlinear dependence on stapes displacement. This description of the nonlinear stiffness allows simulations of the sound transfer behavior of the middle ear for different preloads.