Bangalore, June 28, 2010: In a rare surgery performed by a team of orthopedic surgeons headed by Dr. Lakshmi Kanth from Apollo Hospital, a bilateral Total Knee Replacement surgery was successfully conducted on 94 year old, Mrs. Lakshmiamma recently in a matter of 6 hours. The uniqueness of this surgery is the fact that, till date this procedure has never been performed on a patient aged above 90 years as this is the highest on record in India. Typically insecurity such as fear of operations, misconceptions of health complexities and the age of the patient have restricted people from undergoing such surgeries. This has resulted in most people above the age of 60 choosing to live with the pain than undergo surgery, in turn not only complicating matters but usually shortening active life.
Bilateral Total Knee Replacement surgeries are needed for patients having severe knee arthritis in both knees that are replaced by artificial joints. “The patient is able to walk, independently do her activities and go about her daily life without any pain or anxiety attached with the illness. However she will take some more time to recover completely. The post operative phase which usually takes about a month or two is typically the most crucial phase and needs to be monitored carefully. Am happy to say that Mrs. Lakshmiamma has not only sailed through this period smoothly, but is also recovering tremendously fast”, said Dr. Lakshmi Kanth, Orthopedic and Spine surgeon, Apollo Hospitals. He also added that, “It certainly is a pleasure to hear the positive feedback from Mrs. Lakshmiamm who expressed great delight and wished she had undertaken this surgery 20 years back”.
With aging patients having multiple health problems, any surgery becomes complicated. However the success rate for joint replacement surgeries even in such cases remains consistent with the average scenario, as all prevalent medical conditions can be optimized before and after surgery. Detailing the case further Dr. Lakshmi Kanth highlighted that, “Early diagnosis and treatment for knee replacements is most advisable, especially for patients with deformity and pain, as delay complicates matters. Even in this case, the patient had previously undergone analgesic and physiotherapy, yet did not receive any relief, causing the problem to escalate further, hindering her movement before the total knee replacement surgery was done.”
Total Knee Replacement surgeries are a common phenomenon with the changing lifestyle of the people and involve replacing the diseased knee with an artificial joint. India alone witness approximately 45, 000 Total Knee Replacement surgeries annually with above 95% success rate, that is in sync with International standards.
About joint replacement
One of the most important orthopaedic surgical advances of this century, knee replacement, was first performed in 1968. Improvements in surgical materials and techniques since then have greatly increased its effectiveness. Joint Replacement Surgery involves replacing the diseased and damaged natural joint surfaces with an artificial one. This artificial joint is made of highly specialized metal and poly material. This joint is embedded in the bones with bone cement. Only a small amount of bone is resurfaced to fix the new joint. The most important advantage of Total Knee replacement is that it produces very effective and long lasting life and ensuring pain free Joint for life. Furthermore, the joint functions almost normally post–operatively. The patient is able to walk from the second or the third day after the operation.
Contributed by: Salma Khan (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)