Deaf Three-year-old is Able to Hear for the First Time

We all take hearing for granted, don't we? Well, for three-year-old Grayson Clamp hearing was not as easy. He started hearing for the first time three weeks ago.

Grayson was deaf at birth as he was born without the cochlear nerves that assist in processing sound.

A cochlear implant did not seem to work. Around this time, their parents heard about a research being conducted by UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill. Grayson became the first recipient in the United States to have an "auditory brain stem implant." A microchip is implanted in his brain which helps him recognize and process sounds.

"We don't know exactly what it's like for him," said Grayson's mom, Nicole Clamp. "We don't know exactly what he hears. His brain is still trying organizing itself to use sound."

The first time Grayson could hear, it surely was a miracle. His face brightened up when he heard his dad's voice. The world of sound which the kid was deprived of till three years of age seems to have gripped his imagination.



Source: Medindia