Dr. Low Wong Kein Christopher

Dr Low Wong Kein is a ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeon practising at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital and Parkway East Hospital, Singapore. He subspecialises in the treatment of ear disorders and hearing loss in children and adults, particularly for those who may require a cochlear implant, which is the use of an electronic medical device for damaged inner ears. He has performed more than 500 cochlear implant surgeries in both children and adults in Singapore and overseas, such as Indonesia, Malaysia and China. Dr Low completed his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery at the National University of Singapore (NUS). He then pursued specialist training in ENT and became a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Glasgow and of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, UK. Thereafter, Dr Low underwent advanced training in Australia to treat ear conditions, such as hearing loss, vertigo (giddiness), tinnitus (noise in ear), ear infections and tumours. He has also been conferred a Doctor of Philosophy for his work on ear disorders. Dr Low was previously the head of the ENT Department and director of the Centre for Hearing and Ear Implants at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH). He also regularly ran clinics as a visiting specialist at the Kandang Kerbau Children's and Women's Hospital (KKH), which honed his expertise in managing children with various ENT conditions, such as tonsil infections, pressure and fluid build-up in the ear and frequent nose-bleeding. He was also instrumental in implementing the universal newborn hearing screening in Singapore. Dr Low has been actively involved in various leadership roles in the training of ENT doctors. He was the chairman of Singapore’s Specialist Training Committee, director of SingHealth’s ENT residency program and president of the Singapore Otorhinolaryngology Society. He is currently the president and a founding member of the ASEAN Academy of Neuro-otology and Audiology. He is also the president of the Singapore Association for the Deaf, and a medical board member of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore. Dr Low's research interests include improving treatment outcomes in patients with various ENT disorders. For instance, he was the first to study and publish racial differences in the anatomy of the mastoid facial nerve, which could help prevent paralysis of the face caused by nerve injury during complex ear surgeries. He has authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications in journals and books on topics such as hearing, vertigo, nose cancer, blocked nose, headaches and snoring. Aside from clinical work, Dr Low is an adjunct associate professor at the NUS-Duke Medical School. He is also actively involved in volunteerism and has visited countries such as China and Indonesia to treat ENT disorders in needy patients.