[Functional survival of the human Corti organ after dissection of the eight nerve (author's transl)].

The behaviour of the functional unit haircell - peripheral neurit before and after the dissection of the cochlear nerve in two cases of cerebello-pontine angle tumors is described. An immediate alteration does not seem to be found when the blood supply via internal acoustic meatus is not severed. The survival time after the dissection of the acoustic nerve is somewhat more than seven weeks. This is longer than related morphological findings indicate in the cat where the morphological survival time of fibre population I (95% of all fibres) is not more than four weeks. On the other hand, morphological survival time of fibre population II (5% of all fibres) in cat is up to 14 months. The functional survival time in man under pure tumor pressure is longer than 10 years. Discrepancies between morphological and functional findings may indicate that morphological and functional behaviour do not necessarily coincide.