A NORTH-EAST hospital trust is hosting a major international conference next week.

The Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which implants more devices to aid hearing than any other centre in Europe, is hosting an international symposium on bone conduction hearing.

The event, held at The Sage in Gateshead, will bring together world experts in surgically implantable systems for treating hearing loss. The conference - between June 6 and 8 - aims to help health professionals to improve treatment for people with hearing loss.

Implantable systems work by conducting sound directly through the bone in a patient's head, into the inner ear.