Sound is our lifeline to the world around us, helping us participate in an active and social life. It allows us to hear laughter and joy from our family, friends and loved ones. Riverview Medical Center recently announced it is the only hospital in Monmouth and Ocean counties to offer residents the latest advancement in the treatment of singlesided deafness, the Baha 3 System.
By using the body’s natural ability to conduct sound, the Baha System bypasses a damaged middle or outer ear and sends sound directly to the inner ear. If someone is deaf in one ear, Baha sends the sound via the skull bone from the deaf side to the inner ear of the hearing side.This transfer of sound gives the patient 360-degree sound awareness. Typical hearing aids rely on air conduction and a functioning middle ear. In cases where the middle ear function is blocked, damaged or occluded, the Baha System may be a better option as it bypasses the outer and middle ear altogether. Anthony DeGennaro, M.D., FACS, is a Cornell-trained, board-certified, ear, nose, throat and facial cosmetic surgeon affiliated with Riverview Medical Center, part of Meridian Health.“The ability to provide this procedure for my patients ranks as one of the most fulfilling things I’ve ever done in my 30-year career as a physician,” says Dr. DeGennaro.“The Baha procedure is covered by almost all health care plans, including Medicare, and patients typically go home the very same day.Additional benefits are the procedure is completely reversible, and can be done under IV sedation without the need for general anesthesia.The device is smaller than a Bluetooth and comes in many shades to match a patient’s hair color.”
And no one knows the life changing benefits of this technology more than Meryl Boker of Wall.At the tender age of 4 years old, Meryl battled spinal meningitis, which left her completely deaf in her right ear due to nerve damage from the disease.All throughout grade school, Meryl was forced to sit at the front of the class and adjust her life to cope with her deafness.
“Here I was just a happy-go-lucky 4- year-old girl who now couldn’t hear 50 percent of the world around me,” says Boker. Back in 1976, there was no audiologist available for her to see. For the next four decades, she would live her life without the ability to fully hear the “I love yous” from her family and the laughter from her son.“Like most folks, I tried lip reading and tried to navigate life with one ear.That didn’t work very well, especially in noisy environments,” says Boker.
Boker, a Meridian Health team member for 11 years, had learned of the Baha System after seeing her audiologist Melanie Holzberg, M.A., CCC-A, audiologist affiliated with Jersey Shore University Medical Center, but found out that the technology wasn’t available in her area.“I could have traveled up north or to New York, but I didn’t feel comfortable leaving the Meridian system for this procedure,” says Boker.To her delight, she learned that Dr. DeGennaro was capable of performing this procedure right at Riverview Medical Center. Boker was the first patient to have the Baha System successfully installed at Riverview and has regained 100 percent of the hearing in her right ear.
“This procedure has changed my life forever,” says Boker.“I can finally have a conversation with my son in the back seat of the car, and I am listening to every drop of music I’ve missed out on in the last 40 years. I owe my new life to Dr. DeGennaro and Riverview and am so proud to say I work for a hospital system that could bring this level of care right to my doorstep. I want to now pay it forward and tell as many people as I can about this amazing technology.”
To watch Meryl speak about her experience visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ za- YILtg3Nk. To hear from Dr. DeGennaro visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7Y M8NTTvD4.
For more information regarding the Baha System at Riverview Medical Center, visit www.RiverviewMedicalCenter.com.