David will sleep peacefully for several hours under a general anesthetic while Dr. Jabbour surgically implants a device that everyone hopes will give him normal hearing once again.
First, a small area of David"s scalp directly behind his ear is shaved and cleaned. An incision is made in the skin and Dr. Jabbour then drills into his mastoid bone, creating a pocket for the receiver/stimulator, and then another incision into David"s inner ear where the electrode array is inserted into the cochlea.
The receiver/stimulator, once secured into bone beneath the skin, will convert the signals into electric impulses and send them through an internal cable to electrodes that are wound through the cochlea. This allows impulses to be sent directly to the brain through the auditory nerve system.
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