New Delhi: Providing hope to arthritis patients in the country, a private hospital here Friday performed unique ankle replacement surgery to cure rheumatoid arthritis -- a condition causing joint inflamation.
"Scandinavian Total Ankle Replacement (STAR) implant is a new un-cemented technique for ankle replacement. It uses new instrumentation, where it promises quick recovery and is even better for young patients who suffer joint injury due to accidents," S.K.S Marya, chairman and chief surgeon, Max Insititute of Orthopedic and Joint Replacement, told IANS.
The hospital is the first in India to conduct STAR surgery, which has been prevalent in the West for nearly three years.
"Patients can completely recover in three months. In case of patients between 25-40 years of age, the recovery time is between 6-7 weeks. Till now, we have had techniques that required cemented instrumentation. Now, STAR implants will offer better mobility than other conventional techniques to patients," Marya added.
Earlier, patients of arthritis had options like `joint fusion surgery` and `clean up of joints` to relieve them of ankle pain.
STAR costs around Rs.200,000 with a durability of around 15 years. Patients are usually advised not to squat after the operation.
IANS
