Bulgaria’s capital Sofia hosted for the 15^th time an international scientific-practical conference for education and rehabilitation of children with impaired hearing. The conference is held under the motto You Hear. Doctors, speech therapists, rehabilitators, special pedagogues and experts from Bulgaria, Greece, Romania and Serbia accentuated on the revolutionary achievements in medicine which allow people with fully impaired hearing to regain their hearing and have a normal life. The scientific forum was part of the multiple events held in Sofia and the countryside which marked the 20^th anniversary since the first cochlear implant surgery in Bulgaria.

The organizers of the campaign remind that this medical problem can be solved nowadays, but it all depends on the willingness and the efforts of the patients and their families, as well as on the state assistance. There are over 400,000 Bulgarians with impaired hearing, but according to forecasts their number will increase until 2050. Currently, 40,000 of the Bulgarians with impaired hearing are children. With age, hearing problems get worse. That is why two-thirds of the Bulgarians aged 65 or above have serious hearing impairments. According to statistics, over 700 cochlear implant surgeries have been made in Bulgaria in the past 20 years. However, only 25% of the newly-born children with serious hearing impairments receive cochlear implants. We can achieve even better results through communication and the joint efforts of all units of the system – parents, patients, manufacturers of cochlear implants, rehabilitators and the National Health Insurance Fund, the representatives of the only company that imports cochlear implants in Bulgaria contend. Almost all Bulgarians whose hearing has improved due to cochlear implants receive their first consultation by medical engineer Todor Abadzhiev in Sofia. He has worked for over 15 years together with the Bulgarian doctors to find the best individual solution for every patient. Most of these patients are one-year-old children who demand special attention and patience.

I meet with Bulgarian parents to discuss not only technical aspects, but all types of issues, so that their children benefit the most from the cochlear implants, engineer Abadzhiev explains. We discuss technical issues in the preliminary talks when we need to explain them the technical parameters of the implant and its benefits. Next, we test the cochlear implants before the implant surgery is made. This is followed by some technical settings which are extremely important. Together with the Bulgarian doctors we are an integral part of the families whose children wear such cochlear implants. I represent a company which tries to offer new models cochlear implants each year, because technological progress is rapid and we must always keep up with the latest technologies. We cannot replace natural hearing, but we are trying to get as closer to it as possible.

The Bulgarians who received cochlear implants in the recent years fully adapt to their implants and gradually become citizens who can work normally and be useful to society.

Even the youngest children get used to the new perception quickly and even the smallest problem such as the need to change the batteries of the external device, which usually takes seconds, causes extremely huge discomfort in them, engineer Abadzhiev went on to say. That is why we try to avoid any types of technical problems. These type of cochlear implants do not contain any life-threatening elements and there is solution to all technical problems that may possibly occur. On the other hand, the benefit from this device is huge. That is why it is important to help as many patients as possible.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov