Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

New Capabilities

First U.S. site to administer gene therapy for genetic hearing loss

Children born profoundly deaf can now hear their parents' voices. A single injection of gene therapy into the inner ear has restored hearing in dozens of patients with genetic deafness, moving some forms of lifelong hearing loss from permanent disability into the treatable category. The effect is rapid—most patients recover hearing within weeks—and sustained over at least two years of follow-up.

Updated Jan 9