Hyderabad: In India, every year more than 1 Lakh children are born with severe to profound hearing loss and most of them need cochlear implant surgery to improve their speech and language skills, according to KIMS hospitals here on Sunday.
“To date, there are only 35,000 to 40,000 cochlear implant recipients there and every year around 5,000 people undergo cochlear implant surgery. That means only 5 percent of them are undergoing proper treatment, and there is a lack of awareness and funding options for the rest of the population,” KIMS said in a statement here.
When a baby is born without hearing capacity, it is defined as Congenital Hearing Loss. It affects their Speech and Language Development. It needs to be identified and treated at the earliest.
If the hearing is affected by 90 percent or more than that, one of the best treatment options is “Cochlear Implant”. This is an electronic device that can help to provide a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing.
KIMS hospital is providing services for Severe to profound hearing loss candidates by providing cochlear implants under private and government schemes.
In 2021-22, KIMS hospital has done around 150 cochlear implant surgeries including several bilateral (both ears) surgeries.
To create more awareness on identifying hearing loss, and getting proper treatment at the earliest possible, Secunderabad KIMS hospital conducted a ‘Cochlear Implant Recipient Meet’ here on Sunday.
Several children, who have got cochlear implant surgeries, met in one place. Many of them gathered together and took up various cultural activities, including games, songs, and dances.
Tollywood hero Naga Chaitanya attended as the Chief Guest of this program and encouraged children.
KIMS Hospitals Chairman and Managing Director Dr. B.Bhaskarrao, Head of the ENT Department Dr. Janardhan Rao, Chief Audiologist Sivaprasad and staff graced the occasion.
