Byculla railway hospital creates a hole new record with 56-yr-old

The surgery was performed on Kamla Ayyappan, who was born with a deformed spine

The Byculla Railway Hospital achieved a record in the Indian Railways earlier this month by correcting a spinal deformity through minimally invasive surgery with the help of a small hole made in the back. This surgery is the first of its kind to have been performed at any government-run hospital under Indian Railways.

The surgery was performed in the first week of July on Kamla Ayyappan, 56, who was born with a deformed spine. The condition was diagnosed as a lumbar spine deformity, which causes the spine to curve in the shape of an 'S' or a C'. It had caused her immense pain all her life. But she finally got a shot at getting relief from it. Ayyappan's son, who is a Central Railway employee, had brought her to the hospital for the procedure. After running a series of tests, she was diagnosed with the deformity. Following that, her doctor, senior orthopaedic surgeon Vijay Singh, decided to perform the surgery.

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A hole was made in Ayyappan's back for the surgery, which ensured the smallest incision

Explaining the procedure, he said, "An incision is made at the back to reach the spot. Then, through a tube, the broken disc is pulled out without doing open surgery. After that, an artificial disc is placed at the gap through the same tube," said Dr Singh.

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This surgery not only ensured the smallest incision, but also faster recovery. "Earlier, doctors used to perform open surgeries for such rectifications, which caused heavy blood loss and also delayed recovery. But with this technology, through just a minor incision, we can fix the disc and also replace it," he added. Ayyappan would now require physiotherapy for a few months to completely straighten her spine. "This is a moment of pride not only for the Indian Railways but also for Mumbai," said Anil Kumar Jain, senior public relation officer, CR.

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