Pediatric Cochlear Implant Team
For children with hearing loss, access to sound is a crucial step in the journey to listening and speaking. Many children benefit from hearing aids, which amplify sound, and when paired with intensive education and speech-language therapy, they can develop spoken language. But for children with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss, hearing aids usually are not powerful enough. For these children, cochlear implants are often an option.
The cochlear implant is an electronic device that can provide auditory sensation by bypassing the damaged hair cells within the ear and stimulating the auditory nerve directly. The Food and Drug Administration has approved cochlear implants for children as young as one year old and recently, Medicaid has lowered their qualification age from 18 months to one year allowing more children to be implanted younger. As we know, the sooner a child receives intervention and has access to this type of technology, the sooner their speech and language will develop.
The Center’s Pediatric Cochlear Implant Program consists of a multidisciplinary team of audiologists, speech-language pathologists (Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapists), a social worker and educational consultants, as well as otolaryngologists (ENTs) in the community. We are a full-service cochlear implant facility that evaluates children with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss to determine if they are an appropriate candidate for a cochlear implant. Our program collaborates with Dr. C.Y. Joseph Chang, Dr. Daniel Franklin, Dr. Soham Roy, and Dr. Ronald Vilela to provide the surgical component of the cochlear implant for two manufacturers: Advanced Bionics and Cochlear Americas. We also provide the initial stimulation and follow-up mapping,or programming, for these manufacturers and for the Med-El device.
Our goals are to provide the best possible care for every child and family, to educate other professionals who interact with deaf children, and to conduct research into improving outcomes with this technology.
Pediatric Cochlear Implant Team
Physicians:
Joseph Chang, M.D.
Daniel Franklin, M.D. Rosewood Ear Nose and Throat
Soham Roy, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.A.A.P. UT Physicians
Dr. Ronald Vilela, M.D. Children’s Ear Nose and Throat
Director of Audiology: Jennifer Wickesberg, Au.D., CCC-A, F/AAA, LSLS Cert. AVT
Cochlear Implant Team Coordinator: Marissa Mendrygal, Au.D., CCC-A, FFF-A
Audiologist: Kate David, Au.D., CCC-A
Audiologist: Laura C. Baysinger, Au.D., CCC-A
Auditory-Verbal Therapist: Michael Douglas, M.S., CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert AVT
Educational Liaison: Kristi Ferguson, M.S, Ed., CED
Parent Support: Rosalia Vazquez, LCSW, LCDC, RPT-S
Cochlear Implant Process:
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Initial cochlear implant evaluation to determine candidacy
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Speech/Language evaluation
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Psychosocial evaluation
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Education consultation
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Medical evaluation by implant physician
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Schedule surgery date
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Initial cochlear implant hook-up – two half days
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Subsequent cochlear implant programming to maximize and monitor cochlear implant performance
If you would like more information about mapping services or cochlear implantation and how it might benefit your child, please contact Ada Smoot, our Cochlear Implant Coordinator, at (713) 523-3633 ext. 113.
