Cooch Behar’s 1st Cochlear implant in a 4-year-old at Yashoda Hospitals Hyderabad
Madhuja Ray, a 4-year-old girl from Cooch Behar, West Bengal is the first recipient of a cochlear implant in her city. She had been using hearing aids since the tender age of 3 years and was recently operated by the ENT surgeon, Dr. Manusrut from Yashoda Hospitals Hyderabad. Cochlear implant is a surgically implanted electronic device that restores hearing in severe to profoundly deaf individuals. The implant helps infants & toddlers with hearing disabilities, to listen & learn how to speak.
After thorough evaluation including CT & MRI of the ear, Madhuja underwent the complex procedure in which the cochlear implant from Advanced Bionics (USA) Hi Res Ultra with Slim-J electrode was used. Post operation, she was under observation and after recovery a Speech processor was activated for her to start hearing sounds. She will further undergo rigorous speech therapy for sustenance and adapting to the implants.
Dr. Manusrut is a Consultant ENT, Head and Neck surgeon at Yashoda Hospitals Hyderabad, is one of the first and youngest Fellowship trained Cochlear Implant Surgeons in India. He is sub-specialised in Otology which deals with diseases of Ear and Hearing. He has an experience of performing more than 1500 surgeries encompassing all subspecialties of Ear, Nose, Throat and Head and neck diseases. When asked about the procedure, he says, “A Cochlear Implant Surgery is performed to restore the hearing power in people with Severe hearing loss who are not benefiting with hearing aids. It is a small electronic device implanted behind the ear to stimulate the cochlear nerve, which is responsible for our hearing capability. In fact, one year old children with congenital profound deafness can be implanted with this device. All newborns must undergo hearing screening within a month to diagnose hearing loss, so that appropriate intervention can be done at an early stage. The implantation gives far better results at an early age, especially pertaining to speech outcomes of the child. The implantation can be done in both ears in a single surgery. With bilateral implantation, they can even get a better understanding of speech in noisy areas, identification of the source of the sound with higher music perception. Children with cochlear implants can be easily integrated into mainstream schools, adapt to a routine lifestyle and live comfortably in a social environment”.
“We have been very helpless all these years, as our child was not able to hear and speak. After this Cochlear Implantation and with the help of the doctors, my daughter will be able to do both very soon. She has been given a new life”, said Madhuja’s father.