Stuck at home, audiologist remotely switches on new infant hearing device

Continuing social isolation measures in the UK include: 18-A girl one month after switching on the newly installed cochlear implant. Frankly, her audiologist did what most of us are doing now: TI did that when I was working at home.

The Margarida Cibrao-Roque cochlear implant worked, and thanks to a dedicated acoustics team at the University of Southampton, infants were able to hear for the first time. According to this, this is the first remote switch-on of a cochlear implant in the UK. Press release. It’s another example that people will find Innovative way of working during the outbreak of covid-19 Because we are all working to flatten the curve.

Unlike traditional hearing aids, cochlear implants simply amplify the amplitude of the incoming sound. These neural prostheses are equipped with microphones to pick up the sound. A converter that converts sound waves into electrical signals. It is relayed to the auditory nerve. From there, these signals are sent to the brain, where they can experience hearing.

During surgery, these devices are placed in the patient’s inner ear, but the implants do not turn on for about three to four weeks after surgery, Professor Helen Carrington of the University of Southampton explained in an email to Gizmodo. The delay is to make sure the patient has fully recovered from the surgery Wait until the swelling subsides.

In Margarida, Usher syndrome type 1Inner ear abnormalities cause severe hearing loss at birth. It Also, over time, your eyesight will decrease.

Clinics usually switch on, but with the measurement of social distances, the possibility of Margarida has been ruled out. Inspired by an Australian audiologist, Callington and her colleagues were shocked by the idea of ​​turning on an infant’s cochlear implant from a distance.

“In Australia, patients can live hundreds of miles away from cochlear implant centers, so some centers have decided to keep this remote away so patients don’t have to travel that long. We are using an approach. ”niversity Institute of Sound and Vibration Research.

For clarity, audiologists don’t just switch. It is not the only way to activate a cochlear implant. The level of electrical stimulation should increase very slowly and gradually and with time. Also, while this is happening, the patient needs to be carefully monitored by the clinician. Clinicians also need to measure auditory nerve responses to adjust levels. This is a challenge when the patient is a non-verbal infant who cannot interpret loudness nuances.

Working with Australian experts, Callington came up with a plan to switch the Margarida cochlear implant from home. 2 computers connected With a video link that allows Carrington to communicate with the infant’s parents via the Internet. Dedicated software and hardware were also used during the switch-on session.

“I was reasonably convinced that it would work,” Callington told Gizmodo. “Wi-Fi on both ends was sufficient. I was already chatting with my family and I was convinced that this was fine.”

The session was successful, with Margarida’s cochlear implant working as expected. But for a child who has never heard a sound, this is not immediately obvious. Because they have no frame of reference to understand new stimuli.

“Learning to listen to is like learning anything else, it takes time,” Carrington said. “Especially a little child I’ve never heard of. Margarida is just starting to react to some sounds and it’s very exciting for the family.”

Indeed, Margarida’s mother is excited.

“The possibility that Margarida would call me a mummy one day would mean the world,” she said at the University of Southampton. video. “We can talk and play with my daughter. She can watch TV. Naturally, what she doesn’t have is natural. This is a real victory is.”

Carrington and her team continue to monitor Margarida remotely. We will also follow similar steps in the coming weeks.

“This remote switch-on worked very well and gave us the conviction that it was an option for patients who couldn’t come to the center for some reason,” she said. “Since we tailor our care to individual patients and families, it’s great to add remote switch-on to the options of care we can offer.”

Covid-19 is a great mess of our lives, but as this moving episode shows, How to adapt.