A cochlear implant is not just a hearing aid. Patients with hearing aids have normally functioning ears. They just need louder sounds. Cochlear implants take over some of the function of damaged ears.

From therapy to surgery, we followed a deaf toddler through the process of getting cochlear implants. It's a procedure that will change the course of this young child's life.

Aime Holt seems like a typical toddler. But after her first birthday, her mom noticed something unusual. Cassandra Holt said, "These people at work have a baby the same age as mine and they would say, well my baby is doing this and saying this and I was like, ‘Aime's not doing that.’ There's something wrong."

Aime was deaf. She could hear some sounds, but only with the assistance of two powerful hearing aids.

Aime has spent the last year in therapy developing her sense of sound. She was preparing to receive highly cochlear implants.

Amie was a candidate for the implants because her hearing loss resulted from undeveloped tiny hair cells inside her ear.

Otolaryngologist Dr. Bob Peters began the operation with an incision behind the ear. He said, "We drill a tiny little hole into the cochlea and we thread the electrode or the stimulating wire inside. And then close her back up."

The procedure takes three hours. But in as few as three weeks Aime will be on her way to having the same opportunities as hearing children. Those opportunities are matched by her brother Glen, who received cochlear implants when he was just two.

Their father, also named Glen, is thankful. He said, "When your child comes up and asks you for a drink, and he's not supposed to do that, that's a good feeling - that's when you know you made the right choice."

By Mona Khanna, M.D., M.P.H.
http://cbs11tv.com/health/local_story_325164437.html