Breaking the sound barrier: new electronic devices called cochlear implants are providing a sense of sound to children and adults with profound hearing loss.
Saturday Evening Post › Vol. 274 Nbr. 6, November 2002
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Breaking the sound barrier: new electronic devices called cochlear implants are providing a sense of sound to children and adults with profound hearing loss.
In October 2001, radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh momentarily silenced the airwaves by announcing to his nearly 20 million listeners, "I cannot hear radio. I cannot hear television. I cannot hear music. I am, for all practical purposes, deaf, and it's happened in three months."
After conventional hearing aids failed to address his steadily deteriorating hearing, physicians discovered that Limbaugh suffered from autoimmune inner-ear disease, which affects only about 20,000 of the estimated 30 million Americans with significant hearing loss. The radio personality had lost 100 percent hearing in his left ear and 80 percent in his right. For a radio talk-show host whose career revolves around listening and talking on the radio, the news was devastating. Several months later, with the aid of a device called a cochlear implant, Limbaugh reclaimed his airspace with renewed vigor, grateful to regain his hearing. "For the first time in four months via a medical marvel ... I'm hearing this," Limbaugh announced to his fans. Limbaugh is far from alone, numberi...See the full content of this document
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