Abstract
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) visualizes the internal structures of a number of organs such as the eyes. Although visualization of the internal structures of the inner ear has been used to try and identify certain pathological conditions, attempts have had limited success owing to the thick bony capsule. After decalcifying the bony wall of the cochlea, we could clearly and widely visualize its internal structures with OCT. Specimens embedded in paraffin, sliced, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (HE) were then examined under a light microscope. HE specimens exhibited several artifacts unrecognized in the OCT images, which were considered to be induced during the preparation process. This result suggests that our technique would be useful for examining cochlear pathologies without or prior to histological evaluations.
