Meet Ruby, the youngest baby to have the Nucleus 5 cochlear implant
Like any other baby, Ruby Hallows loves to hear her favourite songs 'The Wheels on the Bus' and 'Baa Baa Black Sheep.'
However, it was only a couple of months ago that the one year-old heard these tunes for the first time, thanks to her bilateral Nucleus 5 cochlear implant.
Ruby, from Hednesford, Staffordshire, was born profoundly deaf in both ears and could not hear anything until she became the youngest baby in the world to have the Nucleus 5 cochlear implant, which was switched on just before Christmas.
Now, like most babies, she reacts to noise and loves musical toys. She will almost definitely develop spoken language in line with her peers and go on to attend a mainstream school.
Ruby's mother Lisa says: 'She is reacting to sounds such as clapping, and is making distinctive sounds, almost saying "Mama".'
Lisa, Ruby's father Lee and her sister Charlotte are also learning sign language so that they are able to communicate with Ruby when she's not wearing her sound processor.
Ruby, whose hair-cell damage is a result of Waardenburg syndrome, a hereditary condition, was diagnosed profoundly deaf when she was just two weeks old.
Lisa says: 'We didn't have any reservations about giving her implants. This way, she will never remember having the operation.
'Christmas was extra special for us because Ruby was given the ability to hear, something we never thought would happen.'
Ruby's cochlear implant surgery was carried out by ENT Surgeon Mr Andrew Marshall at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham.
Last January, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommended that all children born profoundly deaf be offered bilateral cochlear implants on the NHS. Cochlear implant surgeon Professor Gerard O'Donoghue, the director of the National Biomedical Research Unit in Hearing at the University of Nottingham, says the decision marks the end of deafness as it was once known. 'Children born without hearing won't have to grow up deaf,' he says. 'We can now restore useful hearing to someone who is totally deaf. It's a world of difference.'
About 8,000 people in the UK have cochlear implants, including most profoundly deaf children. About 350 children per year are born deaf enough to be considered for an implant.
Cochlear implants do not restore normal hearing, but do give the sensation of hearing by stimulating the auditory nerve, greatly improving a person's ability to communicate.
Find out more about the Nucleus 5 here.
Comments
I saw this article in Daily Mail, and I have to say that the title was very misleading. While I do highly praise that this baby was implanted at a very young age, but there are several other babies who were implanted younger than this one. Children have been implanted younger than 9 months in the US since 2001! Maybe it's different in the UK, but in the US, there are several who were implanted at the age of six months! There was even one in Germany who was implanted at the age of 4 months!
Posted by: Rachel | February 12, 2010 10:04 PM
Hi there i just wanted to say that i am the mother of ruby and you are definately right that she isnt the youngest to have the impplants. I called the paper to tell them this and they didnt seem bothered, as they had already asked me the question and i said she is not the youngest in their interviews. I guess they put things on there which will sell the paper. Not doing another interview!!
Lisa
Posted by: Lisa | March 16, 2010 10:06 PM
Hi there, I'm so glad for you and your daughter what a lovely xmas pressie, our 9 month old son has just been diagnosed as profoundly deaf on friday so we are devastated, I am just wondering was the nucleus 5 system a private op or on the NHS. Thanks
Posted by: Alison | November 30, 2010 12:58 AM
I googled my name and found you. My family came from England, therefore I was intrigued to read about you. I wish you well and hope you are having continued success with your implant. I would very much like to hear from you and learn about your progress.
Posted by: Ruby Gerding, nee Hallows | June 13, 2011 12:38 PM