A team of international and local Ear, Nose and Throat(ENT) experts will starting today up to Sunday conduct cochlear implant surgeries to correct hearing defects in three children.
The children were born deaf.
Cochlear implants are revolutionary devices designed for individuals with severe hearing loss
who no longer benefit from conventional hearing aids. These implants work by converting
external sounds into electrical signals, which are then transmitted to an internal implant that
stimulates the auditory nerve, allowing the brain to interpret sound.
Addressing journalists on Friday, Dr. Miriam Mutero Musinga, General Manager of C-Care IHK said the three will ensure the hospital hits 48 cochlear implant surgeries carried out since 2017 when they launched the program.
“This year we are doing three more to take us to 48 cochlear implants. We have a lot of interest in hearing and ear care. Doing the surgery is the first bit of it but there are other procedures that come after it. We have to make sure the child can be able to hear and speak. We therefore do the entire rehabilitation with our partners,” Dr.Mutero said.
“By having international experts do these surgeries with our local experts, we are helping the country build capacity and we hope in the next few years we will be able to do this on our own.”
The cochlear implant surgeries are done in partnership with Med-El ,a global medical technology company specializing in hearing implants and devices as well as MedPath Technologies Uganda.
According to Nathan Nanjaya, the Uganda country manager for Med-El, they will provide the implantable part and the outside audio processor to be switched on, a month after the healing of the surgery wounds for the child.
He explained that the implant is inserted under the skin, bypassing the non-functioning part of the ear and electrode inserted very into the cochlear.
“For the audio processor is worn on the behind part of the ear on the day of the switch on which is after a month of the surgery. On this day is when the child will hear for the first time. It is a moment of anxiety since we don’t know when the child will respond. While others respond by being static others cry while others smile since they are experiencing something they have never experienced,”Nanjaya said.
According to Dr.Sedrack Matsiko an ENT surgeon, the impact of cochlear implants is enormous as it helps individuals regain hearing and speech.
“Individuals with hearing loss will not be able to participate in social interaction, learn and this has related social and economic impacts. There will be income lost by individuals as they will not hit their expected outcome in their trajectory. You will not able to participate into social interaction, for example sports since it requires on to hear, you can’t be a good politician, practice journalism or do medicine. This defect takes away a large number of people who would have contributed to the wellbeing of the economy. These cochlear implants are therefore crucial to correct hearing defects,” Dr.Matsiko said.
“When we rehabilitate these individuals, the impact on the economy is enormous.”
According to Thomas Rasse, an ENT surgeon from Austria, the process will not end at the surgeries but rather, follow ups.
“The process of follow up care after the surgery is very important with audiologists who also tell parents how to train these children to speak, making a good set-up for the processor so that speech comprehension grows in the moths after surgery. It needs some months, probably longer to train this individual how to speak. It might even take up to one year to be able to hear and speak properly,” Rasse said.
According to Dr. Christopher Ndoleriire, an ENT surgeon, it is high time more awareness is created about hearing loss and how the defects can be corrected.
“March is our month as the ENT fraternity to create awareness about hearing loss and ear health care. If people don’t get to know that hearing and ear care are important in their lives, people will continue to suffer. People should know where they can be screened, what to do after screening, how to get rehabilitated among others,” Dr.Ndoleriire said.
According to Dr.Mutero, C-Care IHK is offering free hearing tests throughout March, encouraging families to take the first step toward treatment.