Doctors at Rela Hospital here have performed an ankle ligament repair for a young sports enthusiast using an advanced arthroscopy system.
The scarless procedure was completed within an hour and the patient was discharged on the same day, the hospital said. The patient, who plays badminton, had a complete tear of the anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) after falling from stairs.
The doctors decided to use the latest arthroscopy equipment developed by a German company since the conventional arthroscopy system had a relatively larger probe, which made it difficult to access smaller joints surrounded by tendons, blood vessels and nerves. The latest system with a 1.9 mm scope provided easy access.
Rufus Vasanth Raj, senior arthroscopy surgeon and sports medicine specialist, who performed the procedure, said that the advanced system enabled easy access to the joint and a minimally invasive procedure with no sutures. He said that the system may even replace the need for MRI scans in such situations since it allowed performing diagnostic arthroscopy under local anaesthesia in the outpatient department.
