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Component of the membranous labyrinth, the cochlea resides in a cavity of the temporal bone called the bone labyrinth and is in close contact with the vestibular apparatus.
The cochlea is a hollow structure in the shape of a spiral, within which three distinct districts can be distinguished: the vestibular staircase, the cochlear staircase and the tympanic staircase.
The cochlea carries out the function of translating acoustic information into a nervous impulse through the organ of Corti, a structure made up of highly specialized cells that lodge inside the cochlear scale.
If damaged, the cochlea permanently loses its functions and the affected individual develops a type of deafness that doctors refer to as "sensorineural hearing loss".
Also known as the snail, the cochlea is one of the two structures that make up the so-called membranous labyrinth (the other structure is the vestibular apparatus).