Pune’s Command Hospital Conducts Groundbreaking Hearing Implants, Sets New Milestone

Pune, 10th April 2024: The Department of Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) at Command Hospital (Southern Command) in Pune has achieved a significant milestone by successfully conducting two piezoelectric Bone Conduction Hearing Implants (BCI). The surgeries were performed on a 7-year-old boy with congenital external and middle ear anomalies and severe hearing loss, along with an adult suffering from Single Sided Deafness (SSD). This achievement marks the first instance of a government hospital in the country procuring and performing successful piezoelectric bone conduction hearing implants.

As a designated Neurotology center of the AFMS, the ENT department at Command Hospital (Southern Command) has been at the forefront of providing advanced hearing solutions to patients for several years. The piezoelectric bone conduction hearing implant system is an implantable medical electronic device designed for patients with various types of hearing impairments, including conductive loss, mixed hearing loss, and single-sided deafness. However, the cost of such equipment has traditionally limited its accessibility.

Certain groups of patients, such as those with conductive/mixed hearing loss or single-sided deafness, do not qualify for cochlear implantation and often do not benefit from hearing aids or middle ear surgery. Providing hearing augmentation is crucial to improving academic outcomes in children and enhancing social interactions in adults. Bone conduction implantation has emerged as the definitive solution for rehabilitating such patients, and the Armed Forces Medical Services recognized its importance early on.

Lt Gen Daljit Singh, DG Armed Forces Medical Services, and Lt Gen Arindam Chatterjee, DGMS (Army), have extended their congratulations to Command Hospital (Southern Command) and expressed their best wishes for continued success.

The surgeries were performed successfully at Command Hospital (Southern Command), Pune, by Lt Col (Dr) Rahul Kurkure, a Neurotologist and Implant Surgeon, under the guidance of Col (Dr) Nitu Singh, Senior Advisor & Head of Department (ENT). Command Hospital (Southern Command), Pune, under the command of Maj Gen B Nambiar, is one of the premier institutes of AFMS. The hospital’s excellence was recently recognized with the prestigious “Raksha Mantri” trophy, awarded for being the best hospital in the entire AFMS.