A 66-year-old woman who was diagnosed with severe grade 4 osteoarthritis of the knee joint was recently treated at Apollo Hospitals. She has since started walking without assistance.
Subhalakshmi Venktraman, a resident of Mumbai, had been suffering from knee pain for six years. She had met several surgeons in that city who said she would have to undergo a total knee replacement.
However, Ms. Venkatrman could not undergo treatment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was at that time that she approached Apollo Hospitals’ Madhan Thiruvengada, senior consultant orthopaedic surgeon. Dr. Madhan claimed that his team completed a first-of-its-kind procedure in the State and the patient was mobile with assistance within three hours of surgery. The surgeon called it a fast track knee replacement procedure.
Ms. Venkatraman said she had hesitated, as a total knee replacement would involve eight to 10 days of hospital stay. The delay cost her heavily. Her condition worsened and the pain hindered her daily activities. The joint bones had developed friction and the bone spurs altered her gait. She limped, favouring one leg. Her knees had also started bending due to the pressure.
Dr. Madhan said, “I used a faster, quicker procedure and smaller incision.” Three hours after surgery she began to walk with crutches and was climbing steps within 16 hours of the surgery done at the Hospital’s OMR facility.
Apollo Hospitals’ managing director Suneeta Reddy said the hospital had leveraged technology and innovation to improve care. “Apollo Institute of Orthopaedics develops more sophisticated techniques and uses increasingly precise tools that can allow patients to go home the same day as their surgery,” she said.
Ms. Venkatrman was very happy with the outcome of the surgery on her right knee and within five days underwent surgery on her left knee as well.
