A team from NUS Electrical and Computer Engineering has developed CLiKX, a novel easy-to-use handheld device that quickly and effectively treats Otitis Media with Effusion (OME), or “glue ear”, the leading cause of hearing loss in children worldwide.
Led by Associate Professor Tan Kok Kiong, the team invented CLiKX, in collaboration with Adjunct Associate Professor Lynne Lim from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, to improve current surgical treatment of the condition. CLiKX uses a sensor to safely insert almost any commercially available grommet into the patient’s ear with a single click in less than a second, minimising contact with the eardrum and reducing discomfort. The procedure requires only moderate sedation or local anaesthesia, addressing parents’ concerns on the risks of general anaesthesia.
“The motivation behind the development of CLiKX is to significantly reduce the recovery time and treatment cost for patients. By streamlining the manpower and resources required for surgical treatment of OME, healthcare resources could be deployed more efficiently for other treatments and procedures in hospitals” – Associate Professor Tan Kok Kiong.
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