Growth of the lateral surface of the temporal bone in children.

The adaptation of implantable auditory prostheses for use in children has raised questions concerning both what effect growth may have on the implant and what effect the implant may have on growth. The purpose of this study is to describe temporal bone lateral surface dimensions in children of different ages to draw inferences about growth rates. Using a surface projected grid and point calipers, 158 intact temporal bones from 103 individuals of known ages between birth and 20 years were measured at six points from a fixed reference. These specimens were located in the skeletal collections of the Smithsonian Institute's Museum of Natural History, the Medical Museum of Walter Reed Hospital at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Linear regression analysis helped clarify a bimodal pattern of growth in which marked increases in dimension occur from birth to 4 years of age and much less change is seen from age 4 to 20 years. These data suggest that implantation in children under 4 years of age is subject to maximal growth effects.