Srinagar, May 30: The Government Medical College Srinagar is hosting a first of its kind workshop on Cochlear Implant and Micro Ear Surgery, a rare procedure which till now hasn’t been done in the state. The two day workshop will commence on June 1 while some of the leading surgeons from across the globe are expected to attend the event.
 “For the first time in the state such an workshop is being held. It(surgery) is different from usual hearing aid and happens to be a delicate surgery which is rarely done across the world. As of now around 80 thousand such implants have been performed,” Professor Rafiq Ahmed Pampori HoD ENT and Head and Neck Surgery at the GMC told Greater Kashmir.
 He said Dr Ameet Kishore of Apollo Hospital, Dr Shalabh Sharma of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital New Delhi  and Dr Mahmoud El TaraBishi from Egypt will be the guest faculty and operating surgeons at the occasion.
 “A cochlear implant,” as per Dr Raja Salman Khurshid an ENT specialist “Is an electronic device that restores partial hearing to the properly selected deaf. It is surgically implanted in the inner ear and activated by a device worn behind the ear.”
 “Unlike a traditional hearing aid, which simply amplifies sound which is then heard in the normal way, a cochlear implant converts sound to electrical impulses which are then transmitted to the nerve of hearing that would normally carry the auditory signal to the brain,” he added.
 He said the implant team consisting of otolaryngologist, audiologist, radiologist, pediatric neurologist, clinical psychologist and speech therapist do the clinical and other laboratory assessments prior to the surgery.
 Medicos said the treatment depends upon the budget capacities of the potential patients and could cost anywhere between five to ten lakhs rupees or even more.
 The GMC  Principal, Dr Shahida Mir said the workshop would open “new vistas of treatment in Kashmir.” The workshop will be held at SMHS Hospital where the experts will perform the rare procedures.

Lastupdate on : Mon, 30 May 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 30 May 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 31 May 2011 00:00:00 IST