Oosthuizen's hearing was severely impaired because of an injury he sustained in a school rugby match in 2007, when he was just 17. Despite four operations to try to repair his eardrum and hearing-bones, life has been difficult for him, as his hearing has remained poor.
Dr Mol believes that this will herald a brand new, positive chapter in Oosthuizen's life. "The moment of truth will be when we turn on this remarkable new technology in the next week or so. His ear nerves are in good condition and we expect the device to significantly improve his hearing."
The procedure is very new and has only been performed a few dozen times in Europe where it has been the subject of exhaustive and very successful trials over the last five years. "This is the first time it has been performed on the African continent and it brings new hope to those with certain kinds of hearing loss." As the technology is new, it is expensive but he believes that costs will decrease as the procedure becomes more widely used.
According to Dr Mol, the Bonebridge Conduction Implant system is revolutionary in that it uses the temporal bones to conduct sounds directly to the inner ear, thereby bypassing damage in the outer or middle ear. People who suffer conductive hearing loss - namely as a result of problems in conducting sound waves somewhere along the route from the outer ear to the ear drum or middle ear - may therefore benefit from this procedure.
"The device is surgically implanted inside the ear. However, unlike a cochlear device, the Bonebridge Conduction device is relatively easy to implant, with surgery generally taking between 30-60 minutes. The internal part of the device fits against the temporal bone while an external sound processor is held in place by magnetic attraction and is discretely and comfortably worn under the hair."
The external audio processor records the sound from the environment, passing it on to the internal implant. This converts the sound into mechanical vibrations that are transmitted to the surrounding bone, which are in turn 'heard' by the body's auditory nerve.
This has a number of advantages over other kinds of hearing technologies. For example, because the sound is conducted directly to the bone surrounding the auditory nerve, it is a great deal more effective than external hearing aids. The external part of the device is small and discreet therefore tends to be cosmetically more appealing than most external hearing aids.
"More important perhaps is that the implant is comfortable to wear. Other bone conduction hearing aids must be pressed tight to the scalp and can cause headaches and skin problems. Another advantage is that once the internal part of the device has been implanted, the external part of the technology can easily be upgraded."
Netcare Union Hospital general manager, Rèsa van der Merwe, says that the facility aims to provide innovative medical care to South Africans. This is made possible by working with innovative and experienced specialists such as Dr Mol. "The staff and management are humbled to have been able to play a role in this groundbreaking procedure and wish Oosthuizen a speedy recovery and a future filled with wonderful sounds."
