With her new cochlear implant in place, Ruth relaxed with her mother, Nancy Komujuni.
Ruth Tatuleka, a 2-year-old from Uganda, was recently given the gift of hearing, thanks to a team of physicians and staff at the Mount Sinai Health System.
Ruth is from Kyabirwa, a village of 1,000 people, and has been deaf since birth. Her family knew that if she were ever to hear, the only solution was a cochlear implant—a small electronic device that stimulates the cochlear nerve, which carries auditory information to the brain. While commonplace in the United States, cochlear implant surgery is rare in the developing world. The family tried to raise funds to take Ruth to India—the closest country that could possibly perform the procedure—but they were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, time was running out, since a child’s first three years are crucial in learning spoken language.
Fortunately for Ruth, a slender lifeline connected her village to New York City: Ruth’s uncle, Charles Kalumuna, MD, volunteers his services at The Allan Stone Community Health Clinic in the village, where a new surgical facility is under construction with donations being raised by Michael L. Marin, MD, the Dr. Julius H. Jacobson II Chair in Vascular Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Surgeon-in-Chief, Mount Sinai Health System.
Dr. Kalumuna reached out to Dr. Marin, who then contacted colleagues at Mount Sinai about Ruth’s case. By August, the little girl was at The Mount Sinai Hospital, undergoing surgery by Maura K. Cosetti, MD, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Director of the Cochlear Implant Program at the Ear Institute of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary at Mount Sinai. “Because hearing is closely tied to language development, our goal is to give children access to sound as early as possible,” Dr. Cosetti says. “We are thrilled to help Ruth and her family in this meaningful way.”
On Monday, September 11, the implant was activated, allowing Ruth to hear the sound of her parents’ voices for the first time—a milestone she met with a quizzical expression. The device was checked and programmed by Jillian Levine-Madoff, AuD, Cochlear Implant Audiologist at the Ear Institute. She established what the family had been hoping for: Ruth now has access to sound. The little girl then began speech therapy sessions, led by Jessica Van Manen, MA, Hearing Habilitation and Speech/Language Pathologist at the Ear Institute, which were a critical part of her recovery since she had previously communicated mainly through gestures.
Maura K. Cosetti, MD, left, Director of the Cochlear Implant Program at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary at Mount Sinai, was assisted by resident Douglas Worrall, MD.
Ruth and her family are now back in their village, where they continue to work on her hearing and speech skills. “Ruth was granted a chance to reach her full potential, thanks to the amazing team at The Mount Sinai Hospital,” Dr. Kalumuna says. “She is a lot more active and happy now, and definitely enjoys hearing sounds!”
Dr. Marin says, “Seeing an outcome such as Ruth’s inspires me to push forward with changing the standard of how the Western world provides aid and surgical care to areas like Kyabirwa, where safe, accessible surgeries are so crucially needed.”