First uncemented hip replacement at Noida district hospital

A team of orthopaedic surgeons in the district hospital here replaced the right hip of a 30-year-old patient. The total hip replacement surgery was unique in the sense that the doctors had used uncemented implant and the cost of surgery was nearly one-fifth of that being charged in a private hospital.

Mohd Naushad, a bicycle mechanic from Nithari in Noida, had been suffering from acute pain while walking for the last two years. He consulted some doctors in his native place Bhagalpur (Bihar) and Noida who diagnosed him to be suffering from avascular necrosis. He was advised total hip replacement. However, the private hospitals gave him an estimate of Rs 6 to Rs 7 lakh.

Naushad could not even think of getting such a huge amount arranged. However, his younger brother Mumtaz, who is a tailor, enquired from neighbouring district hospital the expenses on the surgery. “The doctors here told us that only the cost of the implant was to be borne bus us. Mumtaz took loan from various sources and arranged for the surgery,” said Naushad.

The cost of the uncemented implant that was used for surgery at the district hospital was Rs 1.20 lakh. “We had to bear the cost of the implant. Besides this, we paid only Rs 399 for the cost of surgery and admission in the hospital,” said Mumtaz.

(Avascular necrosis is the death of bone tissue due to a lack of blood supply. It can lead to tiny breaks in the bone and the bone’s eventual collapse. The blood flow to a section of bone can be interrupted if the bone is fractured or the joint becomes dislocated. It is also caused by prolonged consumption of steroids, alcohol and some medicines.)

The team of orthopaedic surgeon Dr Brijesh Singh assisted by orthopaedic surgeon Dr Arvind Atri performed the right hip replacement of Naushad in two hours on February 16.

“The surgery has been successful and Naushad is recuperating. Though we have performed 12 total hip replacement surgeries in the district hospital so far, this is the first time the patient is so young. Keeping in view his age, we preferred uncemented implant to a cemented one as it would require a revision after 20 to 25 years,” said Dr Singh.

Naushad was admitted in the district hospital on February 2 and after undergoing various investigations, he was operated on February 16. “Generally, we discharge a patient two days after total hip replacement. Since Naushad is malnourished, he is still admitted in the hospital. It is the aftercare that is very important in such a surgery _ hygiene, follow up, balanced diet, posture and health lifestyle,” said Dr Singh.