MODEL RELEASED. Cochlear implant surgery. Surgeon operating on a 5-year-old girl's ear during cochlear implant surgery. The operation lasts several hours and involves dissecting the scalp behind the ear. The internal part of the device is placed on the skull under the skin. It consists of a receiver, to collect sounds from an external microphone, and a stimulator. The stimulator sends sound as electrical impulses to electrodes implanted in the cochlea in the inner ear. The cochlea is the organ of hearing, and the impulses are sent along the auditory nerve to the brain, allowing those with hearing losses to regain a sense of hearing. Photographed in the Robert Debre Hospital, Paris, France.