Pvt hospital doing yeoman service to deaf & dumb children

Slug: Cochlear implant surgery

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Tribune News Service

Bathinda, February 27

The doctors at the ENT department of Adesh Hospital, Bathinda, have been performing cochlear implant surgeries on children. After the surgery, children are given free speech and hearing rehabilitation for one year.

The hospital management has been organising camps at regular intervals at different places in the district for deaf and dumb children where screening is done free of cost. A similar camp will be held on March 1 at the Jaat dharamshala in Sirsa. These surgeries have been successfully performed at the hospital.

Dr Grace Budhiraja of the ENT department, Adesh Hospital, said, “The cochlear implant is a boon for children who cannot hear and speak from birth. It is a high-tech listening device for people suffering from deafness due to inner ear malfunction. The device has two parts — one internal and one external. Owing to the degradation or absence of hair cells, sound waves are not converted into electrical signals. As very weak signals or none of the signals reach the brain, the person cannot hear. The cochlear implant delivers missing electrical signals to the brain via the auditory nerve.”

Talking about the benefits of cochlear implant, Dr Budhiraja said, “With cochlear implant, the beneficiary is able to hear sounds that were not possible with the hearing aid. The sound of the doorbell and the telephone bell is heard clearly. One can also hear the footsteps of people and the closing of the door. There is less dependence on lip reading.”