Girl beats rare affliction, posts surgery videos on Youtube

New Delhi: In a heartening instance of courage and positive thinking, a 15-year-old girl who underwent a surgery to correct a rare deformity of the spine has uploaded inspiring pre and post-surgery videos of herself on YouTube to raise awareness about the affliction.

"'Scoliosis will not define me, not ashamed to be called a curvy girl'," is the line with which the video opens.

"That is the message that should be spread, of not letting the disease define you, let's defy the disease," said Rashi, who was diagnosed with Adolescence Idiopathic Scoliosis, a rare and complex deformity of the spine which requires a major surgical intervention for correcting it.

"Rashi's problem was accidentally detected when she went for an X-ray of the chest in connection with a minor lung ailment.

"It was discovered that she had a spinal curvature of 52.08 degrees, a deformity that can both skew the appearance of a person and may cause physical discomfort as the child grows up," said said Dr Vikas Tandon, Consultant, Spine Services, at Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC).

A team of doctors performed a surgery on Rashi to correct the deformity which lasted for nine hours.

"This disorder is very rare. Besides, there is no known cause as to why the spinal curvature of a child becomes suddenly deformed. Since the spine is a very sensitive part of our body and the core of the central nervous system, any mishap in handling it can have a lasting impact on the entire body, which is controlled by the nervous system.

"There is always a risk of nerve damage during such a difficult spinal procedure," said Tandon.