Samsung Medical Center announced on the 13th that it has recently reached 2,000 cochlear implant surgeries.
A cochlear implant is a device that directly stimulates the auditory nerve to help patients with severe to profound hearing loss—who have lost cochlear function—perceive sound. Congenital hearing loss is known to occur in 1 to 3 out of every 1,000 newborns.
Because delayed treatment can lead to language and learning difficulties, cochlear implant surgery is typically performed around 12 months of age. In adults, cochlear implant surgery may also be necessary when severe to profound hearing loss develops due to causes such as sudden sensorineural hearing loss or age-related hearing loss, and auditory rehabilitation with hearing aids proves ineffective.
Samsung Medical Center performed its first cochlear implant surgery in 2001, and on June 19th of this year, it performed its 2,000th procedure. The 2,000th patient was a three-year-old child whose delayed language development prompted an evaluation, revealing hearing loss so severe that the child could only perceive sounds such as airplanes or gunfire. Professor Il Joon Moon of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery performed the cochlear implantation surgery.
According to a study published by Professor Moon in the Korean Journal of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, which analyzed 1,430 patients who underwent cochlear implant surgery at Samsung Medical Center between 2001 and 2023, 93.4% of implants remained functional over the long term without requiring revision surgery within 10 years—demonstrating the procedure's high degree of stability.
Samsung Medical Center has also operated a cochlear implant support program, funded through sponsorships from various corporations, to assist patients facing financial hardship. Through this program, approximately 500 patients have received surgical cost support, and rehabilitation therapy support has been provided in a cumulative total of roughly 80,000 cases. In addition, the hospital has held annual cochlear implant information sessions, offering education on cochlear implants alongside support group programs to assist patients.
Starting this year, the hospital plans to offer free genetic testing to pediatric patients among those receiving cochlear implant surgery cost support, in order to help predict treatment outcomes and guide the direction of hearing loss management.
Professor Won Ho Chung, Director of the Cochlear Implant Center (Professor, Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery), stated, "For patients with severe to profound hearing loss, cochlear implants are nearly the only alternative that can free them from the burdens of hearing loss," adding, "We will continue to devote ourselves to research and clinical care so that everyone can experience a world where they are able to hear."