Bengaluru: He spent nearly all his life in a wheelchair or aided by crutches due to a genetic defect that gave him with a dysfunctional hip joint that titled is spinal cord and shortened his left leg by 10 cms. But now Salman (name changed), a 26-year-old man from Iraq, who has been treated by doctors in the city, is finally able to walk unaided much to the joy of his family.
Doctors at the Columbia Asia Hospital in Hebbal performed a femur osteotomy and hip reconstruction surgery to help get him on his feet. Salman had undergone four surgeries of his lower leg, knee and foot in the past, but all he could do was waddle like a duck despite them.
“We hail from a middle class family. My father runs a grocery shop and I have three siblings. As I child, I could not even enjoy playing because of my tilted spine and short leg. Unfortunately, even at 26, my legs were only as strong as that of a 10-year-old boy. I was not able to help my father in his business either and this made me feel worse,” recalls Salman.
When he was brought to Columbia Asia Hospital, he was not in a condition to walk and was completely dependent on his wheelchair. After a thorough examination, Dr. Ravichandra Kelkar, who is a consultant in orthopaedics at the hospital, and his team decided to perform the femur osteotomy and hip reconstruction surgery.
Says Dr. Kelkar, “We performed the surgery using a femur osteotomy hip replacement implant, which is the newest technology in the field of orthopaedics. For his dysfunctional hip, we had to make space for the relocation of the hip joint from a highly dislocated position and reconstruct his hip socket with a new modular hip replacement that was fixed using screws. In effect, a new ball and socket joint was created and this is why he is able to stand on his legs today.”
The successful surgery has gifted Salman an entirely new way of life, which he has not been accustomed to since birth and he is very grateful for it as it has opened all doors that were closed to him in the past.
