If there were a poster child for cochlear implants,
Grant Phillips would be it. When Phillips was born, he was completely
deaf. After exploring several options, his parents heard about a new
procedure that had been shown to restore hearing loss at a very
successful rate. The first surgeries and FDA studies for cochlear implants,
a device that aid hearing by stimulating the cochlea in the inner ear,
were taking place right in their hometown of Indianapolis at Riley
Hospital. The problem was that the FDA had only approved the surgery for
children more than two years old. After consulting with the lead
doctor, Dr. Richard Miyamoto, the Philips’ and hospital agreed to perform
surgery on Grant when he was just 16 months old. The surgery was a success. After the recovery process, Grant began to hear and, soon after, speak.