Westchester Medical First in NY to use new Robotic Cochlear Surgery

Valhalla, NY (June, 2024) - WMCHealth’s Westchester Medical Center is the first hospital in New York State to complete a robotic-assisted cochlear implant procedure with a new FDA-cleared robotic-assisted cochlear implant insertion system. The new system enables greater control of insertion, resulting in less trauma to the cochlea and better retention of residual hearing. The procedure was successfully performed by Katrina Stidham, MD, Director of Westchester Medical Center’s Cochlear Implant Center.

Dr. Stidham said, “This is a wonderful addition to the Cochlear Implant Center at Westchester Medical Center and will help us successfully treat even more patients who have significant hearing loss and are candidates for cochlear implants. It’s important for people to have advanced options when it comes to treating their hearing loss.”

Hearing Loss Solutions

Doctors at Westchester Medical Center’s Cochlear Implant Center have already performed hundreds of successful cochlear implants over the last decade, making WMC’s Cochlear Implant Center a leader in the field when it comes to treating hearing loss.

A cochlear implant hearing aid is a specialized device that allows individuals – even those with significant hearing loss – to perceive sound and better understand speech. The cochlear implant electrically stimulates nerve cells in the inner ear (cochlea) which then sends the signals up the hearing nerve to the brain. In doing so, the cochlear implant bypasses the problem affecting people with significant hearing loss that prevents them from benefitting from other types of hearing aids.

Use of the new robotic system give surgeons more control and accuracy. It reduces insertion force when a surgeon is implanting a cochlear implant, enabling a slower and more consistent insertion when compared to inserting a device by hand. This helps control and standardize one of the most intricate parts of the cochlear implant procedure, which means patients experience less trauma to the cochlea.

By adding this new robotic control to the cochlear implant procedure, surgeons will have even greater control and precision when inserting cochlear implants, enhancing their already considerable expertise when performing cochlear implants. The device, the iotaSOFT® Insertion System, is the first FDA-cleared robotic-assisted cochlear implant insertion system approved for use in patients 12 years of age or older.

Those seeking to learn more about cochlear implants, to schedule an appointment with a cochlear implant specialist, or to refer a patient should call 914.493.4634.

About Westchester Medical Center Health Network

The Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth) is a 1,700-bed healthcare system headquartered in Valhalla, New York, with nine hospitals on seven campuses spanning 6,200 square miles of the Hudson Valley. WMCHealth employs more than 13,000 people and has nearly 3,000 attending physicians. The Network has Level I (adult and pediatric), Level II and Level III trauma centers, the region’s only acute care children’s hospital, an academic medical center, several community hospitals, dozens of specialized institutes and centers, Comprehensive and Primary Stroke Centers, skilled nursing, home-care services and one of the largest mental health systems in New York State. Today, WMCHealth is the pre-eminent provider of integrated health care in the Hudson Valley. For more information about WMCHealth, visit WMCHealth.org or follow WMCHealth on Facebook.com/WMCHealth or Instagram.com/WMCHealth.