Indus Hospital and Health Network in Karachi has completed 450 cochlear implant surgeries for children and adults with hearing disabilities, providing the treatment free of charge to deserving patients.
According to estimates based on private-sector treatment costs, the procedures would have cost more than Rs2.7 billion. However, eligible patients receive the entire service free of charge through the hospital’s cochlear implant programme.
A total of 126 surgeries have been completed so far this year, while the hospital plans to perform another 36 procedures over the next three months.
Launched in 2014, the programme has helped patients from across Pakistan. Hospital figures show that 310 recipients, or 68.8 per cent, belong to Sindh, while 56 patients (12.5 per cent) are from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 51 (11.3 per cent) from Punjab, 28 (6.3 per cent) from Balochistan and five (1.3 per cent) from Azad Kashmir.
Programme Manager Anum Madhani said patients are not selected for surgery without a detailed medical examination and hearing assessment. Only children who meet the required medical criteria are considered for cochlear implants.
She explained that the implant itself costs approximately $12,000, excluding surgery and rehabilitation expenses. The complete treatment can cost around Rs6 million in the private sector, but Indus Hospital provides these services free of charge to eligible patients.
The programme caters to two categories of patients. The first includes children under five who have been deaf since birth, while the second covers people who previously had hearing and speech abilities but subsequently lost their hearing due to various reasons. The age limit for the latter category is 45 years.
Patients receive three years of post-surgery rehabilitation, including audiology services, speech therapy and psychological support. Parents are also guided on how to care for and support their children’s development.
Madhani said hearing loss can result from hereditary and genetic factors, complications during birth, certain infections, the effects of specific medicines and physical injuries. She added that consanguineous marriages can increase the risk of inherited conditions in some families.
One of the programme’s recent beneficiaries is two-year-old Younis, who was born with hearing loss. The internal component of his cochlear implant was surgically placed around a month ago, while the external device was activated recently in a process known as switch-on.
Senior audiologist at Indus Hospital and Health Network, Tabassum Naz, explained that the child experiences sound for the first time when the device is switched on. However, she stressed that children do not begin speaking immediately after implantation.
First, they hear sounds, then gradually learn to recognise and understand them. Speech therapy subsequently helps develop their ability to communicate verbally.
Naz said the internal implant is designed for long-term use, while external components, including the processor, battery, coil and cable, require regular care. Continued audiology assessments and speech therapy are essential to improve hearing and speech development.
The hospital provides structured rehabilitation for three years, with device and hearing monitoring continuing afterwards.
Younis’s parents told Express News that families should not give up on treatment by assuming a child’s hearing condition is simply unavoidable. They encouraged others to explore modern medical facilities.
They said they learned about cochlear implants through the internet before contacting Indus Hospital, where their child received treatment completely free of charge.
Expressing happiness at their son hearing sound for the first time, they said they hoped to donate to the hospital’s programme in the future if their financial circumstances allowed.
Medical experts emphasise that hearing screening and early diagnosis in newborns can help children with hearing loss receive appropriate treatment at an early age, improving their prospects for language development, speech and education.