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Hearing Impaired Towson Woman Hears First Radio Station Transmission

After Bilateral Cochlear Implant Surgery at Greater Baltimore Medical Center

BALTIMORE, Md. –  July 27 2007 –     Kathleen Galvan of Towson doesn’t mind sitting in traffic jams.  In fact, when recently stuck on an area roadway, she actually enjoyed herself – that’s because recently implanted with her second cochlear implant, it was the first time Galvan was able to listen to and understand a radio station.

Born with hearing loss that progressively became worse, Galvan, a Texas native, underwent years of speech therapy and began using hearing aids at age 16.   She had bilateral cochlear implant surgery (second device) earlier this year in her left ear– exactly 17 years to the day after the first implant procedure on her right ear.  The second surgery was done by Scott London, M.D., director of the Greater Baltimore Medical Center Cochlear Implant Center, the only non-academic institution performing the procedure in the Baltimore area.  It was the first of its kind for the center, and Dr. London expects to be performing several other bilateral procedures in the near future.

GBMC’s Cochlear Implant Center operates under the auspices of the Ear, Nose, and Throat service line, which was just recognized as among the top 50 ENT programs in the United States according to the U.S. News & World Report "America's Best Hospitals" 2007 listing.

“I was sitting in traffic and turned on the radio just to see if I could understand what they were saying,” said Galvan, 49, president of the Baltimore chapter of the Hearing Loss Association of America (formerly Self-Help for Hard-of-Hearing).   “I was listening to a story on National Public Radio about how to get nuclear material out of Russia and across the border.  It was the first station I had ever listened to and understood.”   Galvan’s late father also went deaf.  Her son, 19, is in the process of losing his hearing.

“Now I’m hearing knocks on doors, my phone ringing, the oven timer, my name called from a distance, and so much more than I've ever heard in my entire life,” Galvan said.  She also recently saw her first film, Sicko, without the use of closed captioning.

In Galvan’s words:

With my first implant, I got a Texas accent. With my 2nd, I'm hoping not to get a Maryland accent. 

With my first implant, I heard crickets and birds for the first time and understood most speech in some situations. With my second implant, I heard frogs croak and my cat purr for the first time.

With my first implant, I got a hearing dog. With my 2nd implant, I no longer need one.

With my first implant, I could hear emergency vehicles and cars. With my second implant, I can not only hear them, but I can hear them from a much greater distance and I know which direction they are coming from. 

With my first implant I could dance, as I could finally hear music again. With the second implant, I can hear music even better and like to think I can dance better too.

With my first implant, I flew. With the second implant, I'm soaring.  

Despite her hearing impairment, Galvan began playing the piano at age four, and at age nine knew she loved harmony.  She played viola – “I loved that instrument with every fiber of my being” – in elementary, junior and high school, always playing with musicians older than she. “However in my senior year, I lost more hearing and suddenly could not tell the difference between one note or another.  I knew someday I would be deaf, but didn’t expect how much I would miss hearing music.”

Able to hear somewhat with her one cochlear implant, Galvan began attending Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concerts when she moved to the area four years ago. This past winter, Galvan, with her former hearing dog Fergie, had a chance encounter with a BSO violinist who invited her to attend a rehearsal and sit on stage to enjoy the ‘surround sound.’  The following evening, Galvan listened to the BSO again, this time from the audience.

“I couldn’t have asked for a more wonderful experience,” she said.  “It is certainly something I will remember forever.” 

Editor’s Note: Kathleen Galvan has a follow-up appointment with GBMC’s Cochlear Implant Center on August 2 at 9 a.m. Interviews can be arranged with Galvan and Cochlear Implant center clinicians to coincide with the appointment.  With advance notice, interviews can also be arranged for July 31 (1 p.m.), August 1 (9 a.m.), or August 2 (10 a.m.).

GBMC includes Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC), Central Maryland’s leading community hospital; Hospice of Baltimore, which provides comfort and care to patients with life-limiting illnesses; and the GBMC Foundation, which supports the GBMC mission by managing fundraising efforts.  The 292-bed Medical Center, located on a beautiful suburban campus, serves nearly 22,000 inpatients annually and provides approximately 60,000 emergency room visits. For more information, go to www.gbmc.org

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