GMC has a reason to feel proud NT Staff Reporter Panaji March 26: In a rare surgical feat at the all-India level and indeed for the first time in Goa, the head of the orthopaedic department of the Goa Medical College, Dr S M Bandekar has successfully performed the revision hip replacement on a 64-year old patient recently.
The operation has enabled the patient, Vasco-based Mr Gorgonio Fernandes, to walk once again. Even as the oft-maligned Goa government-run GMC gets a first to its credit, Dr Bandekar stresses the fact that such a rare surgery is now available to Goan patients at a fraction of the cost charged at fancy private hospitals in Mumbai. "This kind of operation costs up to Rs 4 lakh in Mumbai. Moreover, Goan patients will feel lost there. At the GMC, this particular patient paid Rs 1.2 lakh only for the implant," said Dr Bandekar, who led a 4-member team of surgeons in the 4-hour long operation. He was assisted in the operation by Dr Ravish Colvalkar, Dr Sagar Salgaocar, Dr Prasad Karpe and Dr Wilfred de Sa. Highlighting new initiatives in patient care, Dr Bandekar said that his department has a special OPD called the 'arthroplasty OPD' between 2 p.m and 4 p.m, every Wednesday. "Patients operated by us meet one another in this OPD, share their experiences and are examined by doctors. Any patient willing to undergo this kind of surgery can avail of this OPD and get acquainted with the procedure," informed Dr Bandekar. The revision hip replacement on Mr Gorgonio Fernandes may be the first of its kind at the GMC. But the orthopaedic department has already logged around 100 regular hip and knee joint replacement operations in a period of just one year. Dr Bandekar said his department has done all kind of joint replacement operations including the Birmigham hip replacement, the resurfacing joint replacement and at least two cases of bone cancer with joint replacement. He says there is a wrong belief that these operations are not performed here at the GMC. He also said that the state government has already notified the Mediclaim scheme, which makes patients, operated at the GMC for joint replacements, eligible for a sum of Rs 85,000. Goa is the only state in India where the government pays for the cost of the joint, said Dr Bandekar. Explaining the latest operation, he said, "Revision hip replacement is done for patients who have previously done hip-joint replacement and the joint has lived its life. The first operation of this patient was done in Mumbai about 10 years back for `avascular necrosis' (AVN) of femural head. The joint had lived its life and the patient was unable to walk." Dr Bandekar therefore replaced the earlier joint of cement with the latest technology "titanium" hip joint called the Wagnor's hip that is named after its German discoverer. "Avascular necrosis" causes a lot of bone loss. The operation is very difficult because the surgeons first need to do caging and then fix the socket. Avascular necrosis is a common enough disease among Goans due to the consumption of alcohol. The present patient, Mr Gorgonio Fernandes however, did not consume alcohol. The new hip joint is expected to safely serve the 64-year old for at least 15-years. No doubt, this operation at the GMC will bring much hope to other similar patients in Goa, apprehensive of high costs and other difficulties involved in travelling to Mumbai for surgery. But that hope clearly needs to be supported by the government which must provide the orthopaedic department with equipment and space. At any given point in time, all the wards of the department are full of people with broken bones, a result of the unusually high number of vehicular accidents in Goa. Dr Bandekar said his team of 5 orthopaedic doctors gets on an average about 300 patients everyday. Upcoming Event in Kuwait: India Day - 1st April 2005 - Kuwait Entertainment City. May Ball 2005 - 12th May 2005 - Safir Palace Hotel.