DRISCOLL RECEIVES $195,000 FOR COCHLEAR IMPLANTS;
THREE CHILDREN TO UNDERGO PROCEDURES THIS WEEK

HEARING LAUGHTER, MUSIC & MORE NOW POSSIBLE
FOR BROTHER & SISTER, YOUNG GIRL

Driscoll continues to be only facility south of San Antonio
to perform pediatric cochlear implants

(Corpus Christi, TX) Recently, Driscoll Children’s Hospital received $195,000 in private contributions from three major donors to fund upcoming pediatric cochlear implants. The hospital is conducting the procedure on three children this week alone.

“Each donor expressed their commitment to provide children in need with the gift of hearing,” says Martha St. Romain, Vice President of Development. “They are glad their contribution can make such a positive difference in the life of a child.”

In 2005, Driscoll joined the prestigious ranks of more than 500 cochlear implant centers in over 50 countries by offering the cochlear implant exclusively to children. The hospital continues to be the only facility to offer pediatric cochlear implants south of San Antonio. To date, the hospital has implanted seven devices which are solely dependent on outside funding. The donation is slated to cover five cochlear implants costing $20,000 each for the device plus surgical and hospital stay costs

Otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat specialist) Dr. Claude McClelland and Driscoll staff will implant three cochlear devices into 4-year-old brother and 7-year-old sister from Edinburg in the Rio Grande Valley and a 3-year-old girl from Weslaco. They will undergo minimally-invasive, out-patient surgeries on Thursday and Friday and be monitored during a 23-hour observation period. During subsequent days, the implants will be “activated” by Driscoll audiologists, and progress will be monitored.

Each year, more than 47,000 babies are born in Driscoll’s 33 county service area from Victoria and Laredo to Brownsville, Harlingen and McAllen in the Rio Grande Valley. Of those, nearly 100 are born deaf or with a severe hearing impairment

Sensorineural hearing loss occurs when the bones, eardrum, and membranes are intact, but the tiny hairs lining the cochlea are damaged. Cochlear implants are highly technical electronic devices that provide the function of damaged or absent hair cells by directly and electronically stimulating remaining nerve fibers in the cochlea (inner ear). This stimulation is designed to allow individuals with severe to profound hearing loss to perceive sound.

Driscoll’s cochlear team creates long-term relationships with its implant patients and their families through assessment and evaluation before implantation, as well as extensive rehabilitation after the procedure. While trained surgical staff implants the device, audiologists access the patient’s hearing before, during, and following the procedure. The team approach continues with speech therapy services, bilingual testing, social work and psychologist support efforts, and a wide array of training methods.

Since the first cochlear implant procedure nearly 20 years ago, over 35,0000 individuals nationwide have received cochlear implants, with children under the age of 10 accounting for approximately 50% of those using the device.

About Driscoll Children’s Hospital
“Improve the health of adults and you give them back their health …
Improve the health of children and you give them their life.”

Since opening its doors in 1953, Driscoll Children’s Hospital has been offering hope and healing to the children of South Texas for half a century. The facility is a 189-bed pediatric tertiary care center with pediatric board-certified specialists representing 19 medical and nine surgical specialties. Each year, more than 6,000 children are admitted for inpatient care, 5,000 for day surgery, and 50,000 for outpatient primary and specialty care, as well as 40,000 for emergency care, as the first South Texas hospital with emergency services exclusively for children. Additionally, Driscoll maintains a state-of-the-art ground/air transport team, 20-bed pediatric intensive care unit, 40-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and specialized medical outreach.

www.driscollchildrens.org

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