Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital

Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital opened the Ear interaction (Ei) Auditory Development Center at Doheon Digital Medical Innovation Research Institute on June 8.

The center aims to develop programs by using digital technologies such as VR and cloud computing in order to recover the function of binaural hearing and to improve the quality of hearing of patients with hearing loss who have difficulty in hearing rehabilitation.

Patients with hearing loss are usually treated with hearing aids or cochlear implants, but continuous hearing training is required for smooth daily life. The problem is that frequent visits are not easy, and programs are not diverse enough to meet patient's needs.

The newly opened Ei Auditory Development Center has a digitalized soundproof booth for the first in Korea that can measure sound recognition in a three-dimensional space. This soundproof booth is equipped with an automation system that can control the speaker and the direction and volume of sound through a computer program to measure sound recognition.

The ‘Virtual Hearing Training Room’, where you can identify and train the sense of direction of the sound, is also a unique facility at the center. In this facility, researchers can directly demonstrate the developed tools, and patients with hearing loss can access this VR space from anywhere and receive rehabilitation treatment.

In particular, the center has developed an ‘auditory rehabilitation training program’ and is planning to put the program into practical use. This allows hearing loss patients to conveniently receive training suitable for their individual hearing ability at home by applying virtual reality and cloud technology, and receive real-time feedback from physicians.

Professor Hyo Jeong Lee of Otorhinolaryngology who serves as the director of Ei Auditory Development Center said, “With the application of 3 patents for VR-based auditory evaluation and rehabilitation training techniques, the practical use of the new auditory rehabilitation training program is imminent.” And she added, “Our center will continue to conduct various researches to help our patients receive proper treatment, including working on the commercialization of new hearing training programs in partnership with a medical venture, New Royers.”

By Hyun Ho Choi, Int’l Cooperation Team, HUMC (dullie1989@hallym.or.kr)