I. Introduction
Cochlear implants are surgically inserted electronic devices that are used to help hearing impaired or deaf people hear. This device is very complex, one part having to be placed inside the person’s head just above the ear, and the rest simply clipped on the lobe of the ear. First used in Australia in 1978 by Dr. Graeme Clark, cochlear implants have helped tens of thousands of children and adults hear their friend on the phone, listen to a teacher’s lecture, and hear their mother’s voice. The cochlear implant is a miracle machine that has changed people’s lives. (National Institute, 2010)
II. Discovery
Over the last few centuries, scientists all over the world have experimented with finding a way to help hearing impaired or deaf people hear. It all began in the late 18th century when Alessandro Volta discovered the electrolytic cell by putting two metal rods connected to batteries in his ears. Hundreds of experiments were further tested until one man, Dr. Graeme Clark, and his team discovered that “nerve cells in the inner ear can be made to respond back into the inner ear…” and that “nearly normal sound could be reproduced by sending fine patterns of nerve fibers through to the inner ear.” These early findings were the key to creating the first bionic ear. (National Institute, 2010)
After years of continuous research all around the world, and even a trip to the beach where Clark had a breakthrough using a seashell as the cochlea, he was able to perform the first surgery ever on 46-year-old Rod Saunders. The first cochlear implant operation was performed at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital by Clark and fellow surgeon Dr. Brian Pyman. (National Institute, 2010)
III. Biography of Investigator
Dr. Graeme Clark was born in New South Wales on August 16, 1935. He received most of his education in Australia, and graduated from the University of Sydney in 1957 with a Bachelor’s degree in medicine and in surgery. After college, he studied mostly in England, starting at a young age to research and eventually create an implant to aid his deaf father. (Kissiah, 2007)
Clark wondered if hearing could be possible if the damaged or underdeveloped ear could be bypassed and have the auditory nerve stimulated electronically. This would reproduce the coding of sound. After much research, he concluded that an electrode bundle could pass around the cochlea to the speech frequency to produce sound that people could understand but he wasn’t sure how to achieve this without causing damage to the cochlea. After discussing this with his team of doctors, Clark was able to configure the device so that the electrode bundle was free fitting and friction of the wires was reduced with circumferential bands. These bands needed to be the perfect size. It had to be wide enough so that it could decrease the density charge of the electrical current and narrow enough to stimulate the nerve fibers so that the coding of frequency could occur. It also had to be safe enough to test on a real person and hopefully achieve the predicted outcome. His cochlear implant was a complete success and he went on to receive numerous awards for his work with colleague Yit Chow Tong on frequency, pitch, loudness, and elements for speech understanding for the device Clark had created. He was recognized by the FDA in the United States for the implant, and received nine awards during the years of 1985-2010 including the Prime Minister's Prize for Science in 1985. (Kissiah, 2007)
Dr. Graeme Clark founded the Bionic Ear Institute in 1983 and worked at the University of Melbourne as the Foundation Professor of Otolaryngology for thirty-four years and retired in 2004. He is still alive today and continues to share his dream of “giving deaf children and adults the opportunity to participate as full as possible in the hearing world and to find new ways to restore brain function." (Anderson, 2011)
IV. Impact on the World
In 2009, the FDA released data saying that about 188,000 children and adults
around the world have cochlear implants. In the United States alone 41,000 adults and 25,000 children make up this number. Anyone 12 months and older have the option to be fitted for an implant. With an implant, people who are hearing impaired are able to learn to associate different noises with sounds they remember. For those with an implant who are deaf, through speech therapy, they are able to acquire language and social skills.
The surgical procedure for a cochlear implant is expensive, and the amount of therapy required to learn how to hear can be a lot based on how easily you are able to interpret noises into words. And although it is said to be a very safe operation, every surgery has its complications so it is highly advised to talk to a doctor with great experience with this procedure to get the best results.
(National Institute, 2010)
V. Journal Article Review
The journal article that I found by Adam M. Kissiah, Jr. from the NASA-Kennedy Space Center and Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers is titled, “Cochlear Implant Technology.” This article had great information about the history of cochlear implants and their creator Dr. Graeme Clark. Included in the section explaining how the implant works, Kissiah included a link to the fda.org website that shows great pictures of auditory system.
Animation: Normal Ear, Ear with Hearing Loss, and Cochlear Implant Procedure
http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/ImplantsandProsthetics/CochlearImplants/ucm133345.htm
http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/ImplantsandProsthetics/CochlearImplants/ucm133345.htm
VI. Resources
Anderson, J. (2011). Professor Graeme Clark. Retrieved on February 15, 2011 from
Kissiah, A. (2007). Cochlear Implant Technology. Retrieved on February 15, 2011 from http://www.hearagain.org/history_of_the_cochlear_implant.pdf
National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. (2010)
Cochlear Implants. Retrieved on February 15, 2011 from http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/coch.html
Wikipedia. (2011). Graeme Clark (doctor). Retrieved on February 15, 2011 from
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