Dorothy “Tadpole”Yawn
Lifetime sufferer of ear infections
that ultimately led to Single Sided Deafness
Transforming lives…that’s what it’s all about at the Spivey Station Surgery Center. Nobody knows this better than Dorothy “Tadpole” Yawn, life-long resident of Eastman, Ga. and life-time sufferer of chronic ear infections in both ears.
Dorothy’s father nicknamed her ‘Tadpole’ because she was such a tiny baby at birth. The name stuck. In fact, the 67-year-old prefers the nickname over her given name. While her small stature was never an issue, ear infections plaguing Tadpole since childhood resulted in ongoing problems that eventually threatened her hearing.
“I can remember, as a little girl, my mother warming oil in a spoon and then pouring it into my ears to relieve pain from the infections. The warmed oil felt so good and, really, that was the only treatment back then,” says Tadpole.
For many years, Tadpole attempted to control the infections with topical treatments, tubes and, eventually, surgery. At the time, conventional hearing aids, placed inside the ear canal or behind the ear, were the only option for combating hearing loss. Unfortunately, these same devices aggravated the ear and increased Tadpole’s susceptibility to infection.
At a point where she had to choose between deafness and a hearing aid that increased risk of infection, Tadpole felt detached from the rest of the world.
“While I got to be pretty good at reading lips, I felt so left out when I couldn’t hear what was going on around me,” Tadpole explains.
In 2007, Tadpole’s local doctor referred her to Dr. Danko Cerenko, an otologist, ear surgeon, credentialed to perform surgeries at the Surgery Center at Mt. Zion. By that time, Tadpole was already deaf in her right ear. This meeting proved to be a turning point for her. Dr. Cerenko was able to cure infection in the left ear.
Because of her increased hearing loss and problems with conventional hearing aids, Dr. Cerenko suggested Tadpole undergo surgery to receive a Bone Anchored Hearing Aid, or Baha®. It works through a small titanium implant surgically set into the skull, behind the ear, and attached to a sound processor. The sound processor uses bone conduction, sound transmitted through the skull, to help the person hear.
“The extent of issues Tadpole experienced made her a prime candidate for the Baha® system,” says Dr. Cerenko. “Because the Baha® sound processor attaches directly to the skull, there’s no need to insert a piece of equipment into the ear canal. Essentially, we helped both of Tadpole’s ear problems – better hearing and decreased susceptibility to ear infection.”
Dr. Cerenko performed Tadpole’s Baha® surgery at The Surgery Center at Mt. Zion in October 2007 with complete success.
“The Baha® is the closest thing to hearing naturally,” says Tadpole. “I would recommend this procedure to anyone who’s eligible as it has helped me once again feel connected to the world.”
The surgery center started offering the Baha® treatment in May 2007, and is the only outpatient surgery center in the Southern Crescent performing this procedure. Spivey Station Surgery Center is so pleased to be part of Tadpole’s transformation. After all, that’s what we’re all about.
