What is the earliest age at which a child can get cochlear implants?

Q: We recently discovered that our 9 months old daughter is deaf. We are planning to get her a cochlear implant. Can we go ahead in getting the implant done immediately? What is the suitable age for getting a cochlear implant? We reside in Bangalore. Please suggest a place where the implant can be done?

A:If the complete work up like BERA, OAE, CT, MRI have been done along with a 3 month hearing aid trial, then the implant can be done at 1 year of age. You are residents of Bangalore, hence your ideal choices would be - Dr. Milind Kirtane and Dr. Sandra Desouza in Mumbai or Dr. Mohan Kameshwaran in Chennai.