Your inner ear is the innermost part of your hearing system and home to your vestibular (balance) system. It contains the cochlea, which helps you hear, and the semicircular canals and otolith organs that help you balance.

This vibration creates movement of fluid in the inner ear also known as the cochlea. The fluid movement causes sensory receptors in the coiled-shaped cochlea to send a signal along the auditory nerve to the brain, and this is how we hear. The human ear consists of the outer, middle and inner ear.

The cochlea makes up the hearing part of the inner ear and is situated in two chambers, called the Scala Vestibuli and Scala Tympani. The scala vestibuli and scala tympani are connected at the apex of the basilar membrane, forming a long, connected duct as shown in the figure below.