Figure 8.

Ultrastructural changes in the stria vascularis after exposure to 116 dB. A. Eight hours after exposure in the upper basal turn (approximately 22 kHz region), marginal cells are swollen (black arrow), intermediate cells are shrunken and pyknotic (white arrow), and large intercellular spaces form between processes of marginal and intermediate cells. B. Two weeks after noise exposure in the lower apical turn at approximately 6 kHz, the stria is thin and atrophio, marginal cells (black arrow) lack interdigitated processes, and intermediate cells are disintegrated (white arrow). Scale bar applies to A and B.