A 3-year-old girl presents with profound hearing loss (90dB) in the left ear and severe hearing loss (70 dB) in the right ear

 A 3-year-old girl was diagnosed a year ago with profound hearing loss in the left ear and severe hearing loss (~70 dB) in the right ear. She was fitted with mid-power hearing aids (approx. ₹1.5 lakhs for both ears) and started speech therapy. However, after a few sessions with minimal speech improvement, the speech therapist referred her to me at Shravya, S.R. Nagar.


Upon review, I examined her previous hearing assessments done at multiple centers—all of which consistently indicated the same degree of hearing loss. However, I noted that the hearing aids were not appropriately fitted or programmed. Instead of immediately replacing the devices, I thoroughly counseled the parents about her hearing condition and the limitations of the current hearing aids, then reprogrammed the same devices for optimal output. I advised them to continue speech therapy and follow up monthly to monitor progress.


Conditioning sessions were carried out to obtain reliable responses with and without hearing aids. Meanwhile, I recommended CT and MRI scans to evaluate candidacy for a cochlear implant for the left (profound loss) ear.


Imaging revealed normal cochlear anatomy on the right, but hypoplasia (underdevelopment) of the cochlea on the left side. I explained the radiological findings and set realistic expectations regarding outcomes.


Now, after nearly a year of therapy and limited benefit with hearing aids, the child is undergoing a left ear cochlear implant (CI622) with Nucleus 8 processor. I also recommended upgrading the right ear hearing aid when the family is financially ready, to support bimodal hearing and maximize auditory outcomes.

Yesterday (8th July 2025) only finalised about Implant for Left ear
*Dont want to reveal kids identity. 

Location: Hyderabad, Telangana, India

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