AIIMS Bathinda gives gift of sound to 5-year-old with smart cochlear implants

The ear, nose, and throat (ENT) department at AIIMS Bathinda performed the implant surgery on a five-year-old child from Punjab on Monday, with the family footing the ₹35-lakh expenditure

In a first-of-its-kind procedure at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bathinda, a bilateral cochlear implantation was successfully performed using the latest generation of smart cochlear implants.

AIIMS executive director Dr Ratan Gupta said the institute started the cochlear implantation facility in May and 10 children have been benefitted from it ever since. (HT)

The ear, nose, and throat (ENT) department at the central institute performed the implant surgery on a five-year-old child from Punjab on Monday, with the family footing the ₹35-lakh expenditure.

Bilateral cochlear implantation involves placing an electronic neuroprosthesis in both ears to restore hearing for patients with severe-to-profound hearing loss. It significantly improves speech recognition in noisy environments, aids in sound localisation and provides a higher overall quality of life compared to single-sided implants, according to health experts.

Early diagnosis and timely cochlear implantation, especially in children, are essential for normal development of speech, language, learning and communication, they said.

AIIMS executive director Dr Ratan Gupta said, “AIIMS started the cochlear implantation (CI) facility in May and 10 children have been benefitted from it ever since. In these cases, regular implants, costing around ₹5-7 lakh, were provided for free under various schemes of the Centre and the Punjab government. One implant was funded by the Bathinda MP from the local area development fund,” said Gupta.

ENT head of department Dr Vaibhav Saini said AIIMS provided comprehensive cochlear implant care under one roof, including patient evaluation, surgery, device programming, auditory rehabilitation, speech therapy and long-term follow-up through a dedicated multidisciplinary team.

According to the officials from the health department, the Punjab government has nominated AIIMS and four state-funded medical colleges in Faridkot, Mohali, Amritsar and Patiala for free CI procedures.