Last week two patients underwent total knee replacement surgery at AIIMS Nagpur. The two surgeries were done under the MJPJAY scheme, and patients did not have to pay for the surgery. One of the patients had progressive right knee pain and swelling for 5 years, and was wheelchair-bound for the last two years. He had also a valgus deformity in his right knee. When the medical management could not provide pain relief and mobility to the patient, he was given the choice of total knee replacement surgery. After the surgery, he could walk comfortably without pain the next day.
The other patient had both knee pain and swelling for the past 5 years, and used to walk with support for the past one year. She had 20 degrees varus deformity in her left knee. She underwent left total knee replacement surgery at AIIMS Nagpur after which her left knee pain and deformity have been corrected and she has started walking comfortably.
“Knee osteoarthritis is a crippling disease seen in the elderly population and leads to significant morbidity and loss of mobility. Knee replacement surgery provides pain relief and deformity correction and can help improve mobility in such patients with end-stage knee osteoarthritisâ€, says Dr Samir Dwidmuthe, In-charge, Orthopaedics Department, AIIMS Nagpur.
“The number of patients requiring knee replacement surgeries due to end-stage knee osteoarthritis is very high in the Indian population, owing to squatting and related cultural habits. However, due to financial constraints, many such patients do not undergo surgery despite having severe pain and knee deformity. Due to the continuous encouragement and support from Maj Gen Dr Vibha Dutta, SM, Director and CEO, and Dr Manish Shrigiriwar, Officiating Medical Superintendent, we have been able to start knee replacement surgeries under MJPJAY scheme at AIIMS Nagpur. Now all such patients who are enrolled under the MJPJAY scheme, can avail the benefit of the surgery and need not live their rest of the life in pain and agony due to financial issuesâ€, tells Dr Vivek Tiwari, Assistant Professor, Orthopaedics Department, and the knee replacement specialist at AIIMS Nagpur.
The post-operative period of both the patients were pain-free and uneventful. A team of doctors from Orthopaedics department including Dr Mahadeo Ghuge, Dr Suhas Aradhya BM, Dr Gaurav Bhutada, Dr Mainak Roy and Dr Harshavardhan Reddy look after the post-operative care of the patients. According to the patients, the nursing care provided by the team of nurses headed by Mr Gajanan Gitte and Mr Vishwas Mulay, was excellent and they did not have any problems in the wards.
The faculty team of anaesthetists for the cases included Dr Amrusha Raipure and Dr Avinash Prakash.
Both the patients thanked the AIIMS doctors, nurses and the administration for the successful knee surgery.
