[Peculiarities in the development of the superior semicircular canal].

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to study the ontogeny of the superior semicircular canal in order to describe its peculiarities. METHODS We analyzed 76 series of human embryos aged between 32 days (6mm) and newborns. The samples were cut serially and stained using Martin's trichrome technique. RESULTS In semicircular canal development there were a number of peculiarities, such as: a defined chronological sequence of osteogenesis with a variable rate of ossification; the fact that each nucleus of ossification was involved in the formation of one of its covers (the upper in the superficial and the lower in the deep); the appearance of transitory dehiscence; and canal closure by means of bone with laminar pattern, with a minimum thickness of 0.1mm. CONCLUSION The peculiarities in canal development could explain the origin of pathological dehiscence in the canal, whether congenital or acquired.