The Dubai-based Al Baraha Hospital has successfully implanted the smallest hearing device by Sophono in a patient, the first such case in the Middle East.  

The medical team, led by Dr Ahmed Al Amadi, consultant and head of the ear, nose and throat department, implanted the modern device in the bone to deliver sound directly to the inner ear without the need to pass through the outer and middle ear. 

The hearing aid is designed for patients with congenital abnormalities in the outer or middle ear. It is used for individuals suffering from repeated or severe ear infections brought on by wearing the traditional hearing devices.

The Sophono device is one of the most important developments of modern science, helping hearing-impaired patients, including children above five years old. It does not cause inconveniences in the ear drum and enables them to listen to conversations normally. Many patients have already been benefiting from the implants without any negative effect, with a high success rate of 90 percent. The device is also more advantageous over cochlear implant, said a press release.

Dr Al Amadi and his team successfully conducted the surgery to a patient who is in early 30s and had been suffering from congenital hearing problem in the right ear.

Al Baraha Hospital is also the first hospital in the Middle East to perform Eustachian tube dilatation through balloon technology, first to use the surgical navigation technology in the Ministry and only government centre in the country which conducts Endoscopic surgery to treat salivary gland disorders. – TradeArabia News Service