title: The tympanic wink (le clin d'oeil tympanique).
abstract: The "tympanic wink" illustrates a beating brillance born on the antero-inferior quadrant of the promontory and appearing on the tympanic membrane as a false beating light triangle. This sign may be an aid in discovering a minor vascular abnormality of the middle ear: hypertrophy of carotico-tympanic or inferior tympanic arteries, dehiscence of the ascending part of the internal carotid canal or the possibility of a persistent stapedial artery.
mesh_terms: D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000002:abnormalities; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000002:abnormalities; D004432:Ear, Middle / Q000098:blood supply; D006801:Humans; D055095:Optics and Photonics; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012018:Reflex / Q000502:physiology*; D014432:Tympanic Membrane / Q000502:physiology*