FOR seven decades Colin Hughes has been struggling to keep up with conversations swirling around him.

Born with narrow eustachian tubes unable to drain fluid from his middle ear, the retiree from Mudgee has never been able to hear properly.

Surgeon Phillip Chang looks at the hearing implant that he will place in his patient Colin Hughes during surgery at The Hills Private Hospital. Credit:Kate Geraghty

He has endured seven bouts of surgery, and is unable to wear conventional hearing aids, which sit inside the ear canals, for more than a few hours because they cause inflammation. A lifetime on antibiotics has left him resistant to all but the most powerful, and depression plagues his days because he cannot participate fully in family life.

But within a few weeks Mr Hughes will become one of the first Australians to use new bone-anchored hearing aids designed to adjust to noisy environments, quiet conversations or the complex varying rhythms and pitch of music.