This is the heartwarming moment a mother bursts into tears when her deaf toddler hears sounds properly for the first time.

Adorable footage shows one-year-old Ayla Esler reacting to her cochlear implant being activated - before her mother becomes overwhelmed with emotion.

The surprised youngster flinches when the device is switched on before cupping her ear and bobbing around in excitement.

One-year-old Ayla Esler cups her ear when doctors activate her cochlear implant device

Her overwhelmed mother sheds a tear as she watches her baby girl hear sounds for the first time

Ayla's mother sheds a tear as she sees her baby girl bouncing on her lap with a beaming smile.

Ayla's father, brother and sister watch on with excitement as they support the toddler during her big moment.

The video was shared on Tuesday by Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Esler family travelled five hours by car from Amarillo, Texas, for the treatment.

Ayla's father puts an arm round his emotional wife while the couple's other children watch on in support

The video was shared on Tuesday by Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas

Cook Children's launched its cochlear implant program in 2006.

A child with a cochlear implant wears a receiver inside his or her ear and a sound processor – essentially a microphone – behind the ear or attached to his or her shirt.

The processor picks up sounds or speech and converts it into 'a special code' that is then transmitted to the receiver in the ear.

That code is then passed through the cochlea and ultimately to the brain for processing.