The Hindu : New Delhi News : Better hip-replacement surgery comes to the fore

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 04, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Better hip-replacement surgery comes to the fore

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, FEB. 3. Titled the `Asian Hip' this one claims to be better than the best. Finally managing to do away with the traditional bane associated with hip-replacement surgery, this latest technique -- Articular Surface Replacement (ASR) -- though a bit expensive allows the patient to sit, squat and even permits sporting and athletic activity, previously unimaginable after a conventional hip surgery.

Imported and first tried out among Delhi patients by joint replacement surgeon S.K.S. Marya, ASR was performed successfully at Max group of hospital in May 2004.

Now, 10 successful operations later, the technique is finally "out for the public'.

"Following 10 such successful surgeries that we have performed, we are now sure that the system really works for patients. Why we did not make a noise about this earlier was because of the fact that we wanted to wait and see the results for ourselves with the new gadgets. We are now satisfied with the result and are confident about what the final outcome would be," explained Dr. Marya.

The conventional hip joint replacement is essentially a ball and socket joint, where the ball (on the top of the thigh bone) moves in the socket (of the pelvic bone).

The ASR, however, includes a large metallic socket that articulates with a big highly polished metallic head.

This permits the patient to squat and sit cross-legged, and is hence user-friendly especially for the Indian people, for whom these movements are essential. The `Asian Hip' is better than the conventional small metal ball which is made to run on a high-density plastic socket. This model has served very well in removing pain and providing reasonable function over last 40 years.

However, there remain concerns like the wear of plastic, which restricts the life span of joint to about 15 years. In addition, the patient is not permitted to squat or sit cross-legged with this design.

"What the ASR does is to prolong life of the implants and provide greater function to patients.

The ASR hip replacement lines the ball and socket with metal surface of very high quality and also ensures that very little bone is removed to seat the implant. The size of ball is very large and this permits excellent movement range allowing the patient to squat or sit cross-legged.

It is also expected to last longer and as and when necessary it is easy to convert this to a conventional hip replacement. It is extremely useful in young patients," explained Dr. Marya.

Delhi has shared the experience and technique with select Mumbai hospitals that also offer the facility now.

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