In a landmark medical achievement, doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, have performed the institute’s first Auditory Brainstem Implant (ABI), marking a major breakthrough for children who cannot undergo conventional cochlear implant surgery.

AIIMS has been a pioneer in cochlear implant technology for over 25 years. The institute carried out its first cochlear transplant in 1997 and was among the earliest centres in India to introduce the procedure. Today, it performs around 70 to 80 cochlear implant surgeries annually and has completed nearly 1,500 such procedures so far, backed by an intensive follow-up and rehabilitation programme.

Cochlear implants have transformed the lives of children born with profound hearing loss. In the procedure, a wire-like electrode is inserted into the cochlea — the spiral-shaped inner ear structure — to stimulate hearing nerves. However, in some rare cases, the cochlea is either absent or becomes damaged beyond repair.

This often happens in children who suffer from severe meningitis. The infection can cause the cochlea to turn into bone, leaving no opening to insert the electrode. Until recently, such children had virtually no surgical option to restore hearing.

Now, doctors at AIIMS have taken a significant step forward by performing an Auditory Brainstem Implant — a highly specialised procedure that bypasses the damaged cochlea entirely. Instead of placing the electrode in the inner ear, surgeons implant it directly at the level of the brainstem, targeting the cochlear nucleus, where hearing nerves originate.

The complex surgery was carried out in collaboration with the neurosurgery department and with the assistance of a German surgeon experienced in the technique. Doctors describe the condition as rare and say the device itself is not widely used, which makes each case both challenging and significant.

While an Auditory Brainstem Implant does not provide hearing in the same way as a cochlear implant, it allows sound signals to directly stimulate the brainstem. This can help a child regain awareness of sound and gradually develop speech.

One such beneficiary is a five-year-old child from Delhi who underwent the procedure at AIIMS. The child had normal hearing and speech development until the age of two, when meningitis struck. The infection caused ossification of the cochlea, making a cochlear implant impossible.

Following the brainstem implant surgery, doctors report that the child has developed sound awareness and is showing steady speech development. For the medical team, the progress is encouraging. For the family, it represents a renewed connection to the world of sound.

With this first Auditory Brainstem Implant, AIIMS has opened a new chapter in advanced hearing restoration in India — offering hope to children once considered beyond the reach of conventional hearing technology.