New Delhi: Rare Orthopaedic Surgery performed at Safdarjung Hospital

New Delhi: In probably a first for a government hospital, a rare Arthroscopic Suture Bridging Surgery was performed at Safdarjung Hospital at New Delhi. The doctors, arthroscopically used a suture to fix a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) avulsion fracture, without the use of any implant such as a screw or an endobutton.

Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) avulsion fractures are a type of avulsion fracture of the knee that represent the most common isolated PCL lesion. This typically involves separation of the posterior tibial insertion of the PCL to variable degrees.

The case is of one patient Ankur, an 18 year old boy who suffered a road traffic accident. He was diagnosed to have a posterior cruciate ligament avulsion fracture of knee due to which patient was not able to walk properly and was on bed rest for 3 weeks. After being referred from other hospitals due to complexity of the required surgery, he came to the Central Institue of Orthopaedics, at Safdarjung Hospital New Delhi . A team of orthopaedic surgeons led by Dr. Balvinder Singh, assistant professor, Dr. Taha Ahmed and Dr. Mohit Garg, senior residents, Dr. Ashu Meena, anaesthetists Dr. Rajni and Dr. Santosh, assisted by sister Aruna undertook this procedure using a novel technique.The doctors used an Arthroscopic suture bridging technique which does not require any implant like screws or endobutton hence bringing down the cost by 70-80%.