Stapes (Stapes)
Educational content only — not medical advice.
Anatomy
The stapes is the smallest bone in the entire human body, stirrup-shaped with a head, neck, two crura, and a footplate seated in the oval window (fenestra vestibuli). Its head articulates with the incus, and the stapedius muscle — the smallest skeletal muscle — inserts on its neck to damp movement and protect against loud sound. The footplate is the bridge that transmits mechanical vibration into the fluid of the inner ear.
Clinical notes
Otosclerosis is a pathological fixation of the stapes footplate in the oval window, producing progressive conductive hearing loss with an absent stapedial reflex; it is treated surgically with stapedectomy/stapedotomy. Perilymph fistula from footplate subluxation (e.g. barotrauma) combines vertigo with sensorineural loss and is an ENT emergency.
Related structures
Educational references
FAQ
What is the role of the Stapes?
The stapes is the smallest bone in the entire human body, stirrup-shaped with a head, neck, two crura, and a footplate seated in the oval window (fenestra vestibuli). Its head articulates with the incus, and the stapedius muscle — the smallest skeletal muscle — inserts on its neck to damp movement and protect against loud sound. The footplate is the bridge that transmits mechanical vibration into the fluid of the inner ear.
Why is the Stapes clinically important?
Otosclerosis is a pathological fixation of the stapes footplate in the oval window, producing progressive conductive hearing loss with an absent stapedial reflex; it is treated surgically with stapedectomy/stapedotomy. Perilymph fistula from footplate subluxation (e.g. barotrauma) combines vertigo with sensorineural loss and is an ENT emergency.
Source & license
Derived from Z-Anatomy (Gauthier Kervyn et al.), CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/); upstream geometry from BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science. license details