Apollo Hospitals, Chennai has successfully performed yet another break-through surgery that transformed a women’s life. Dr. Sajan K Hegde and his team successfully completed a fusionless scoliosis surgery on a female patient from the United States of America who was affected by idiopathic Scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine.
Ms. Daniel Fry, was suffering with this condition since 30 years and was experiencing pain over the past two years along with an increase in the deformity gradually. She was unable to carry out her day-to-day activities due to Idiopathic Scoliosis. This abnormal scoliosis affects an estimated six to nine million people in the United States every year. Scoliosis can develop in infancy or early childhood. Females are eight times more likely to progress to a curve magnitude than men.
Idiopathic scoliosis results in distortion of the rib cage, trunk and shoulders and severe scoliosis can also cause cardiopulmonary problems. Surgical treatment is often recommended for patients whose curves are greater than 35-degree while they are still at a growing stage. Traditionally, fusion surgical treatment is performed to address this issue, where metal implants are attached to the spine, and then connected to two rods. These implants hold the spine in a corrected position until the segments fuse as a single bone. As compared with the fusion surgery, fusion less scoliosis surgery aims to support spine growth and movement. The conventional treatment also diminishes growth in height as lengthening proceeds.
The patient used to live a very active lifestyle and would participate in marathons and decathlons but the pain from the severe progressive spinal deformity made it impossible to indulge her passion in sports. The deformity which was detected in her teenage years had progressed and she consulted several top spine surgeons in the US. They all suggested fusing her spine and fixing with rods. This would have restricted the mobility of her back and certainly stopped her from ever running a marathon and indulging in her passion for sports.
She was multiple surgical solutions to correct her posture and identified that the Apollo Spine unit would be able to relieve her from her prolonged suffering. She visited Apollo Hospitals Chennai on the 16th of April 2021.
Speaking about the revolutionary procedure, Dr. Sajan K Hegde, said, “Fusionless Scoliosis Surgery takes minimal time, and is a less invasive, less expensive surgery that preserves motion and function in patients while lessening the chance of back pain later in life. This technique can now be used in idiopathic scoliosis where the deformity is corrected using a flexible cable. Here no fusion of the operated portion of spine is performed. These patients can return back to full normal activities faster and lead their life trouble free.”
The patient is under physiotherapy, her posture has improved and her ribcage, trunk and shoulders are aligned and getting better. She is back to normal day-to-day activity and is returning to the US this week.
