165 Kg Obese Patient Undergoes Successful Knee Replacement at Shalby Hospitals Ahmedabad

 

• Heaviest person ever to undergo knee replacement.
• A novel implant manufactured by Shalby Advanced Technologies was utilized during the operation; it was the first of its kind in India.
• Five previous surgeries were performed on this patient from Sudan in a total of three different countries.
• Dr. Vikram Shah had successfully operated on a 162-pound Indian patient 12 years ago to perform a knee replacement. After the operation, he has had no knee problems.
• 

India, 24^th August 2022 : Dr. Vikram Shah and his team at Shalby Hospitals in Ahmedabad performed a knee replacement surgery on both knees of a 60-year-old Sudanese woman weighing 165 kg. Mrs. Samia Ahmed is from Khartoum, Sudan's capital. Her husband is a businessman, and her son and daughter are both doctors. Another son is a medical student in Egypt. In 2005, she was diagnosed with elephantiasis, often known as elephant leg illness. The affected person's legs and limbs expand abnormally in this unusual illness spread by mosquitoes. She began to gain weight quickly because of this disease.

Our knees and hip joints bear the weight of our bodies. Obese people's knees and hips are strained because of their weight. Thus, knee osteoarthritis (arthritis of the knee joints) is a prevalent ailment among persons who are extremely obese. Mrs. Ahmed had already had two leg fractures. She broke her lower third tibia (bone just above the ankle) in her right leg in 2012, and her proximal tibia (bone just under the knee) in her left leg in 2015. She has already undergone five orthopedic surgeries for them. Two of them were completed in Sudan, two in the United Arab Emirates, and one in Egypt. She had been bedridden for several months and could only move around with extreme agony and acute pain in her knees. This case is exceptional because of her history, trauma, and significant obesity, which caused her knee joints to become profoundly arthritic and so damaged.

At a press conference organized at Krishna Shalby Hospitals in Ahmedabad Shalby’s team of surgeons and talked about this case in detail. The patient and her sons were also part of the conference. Shalby’s team at the conference included Dr Vikram Shah, World-renowned Joint Replacement Surgeon and Chairman & Managing Director of Shalby Hospitals, Dr Nishita Shukla, Group COO of Shalby, Dr Bharat Gajjar, Global OPD Director, and Shalby’s senior surgeons Dr Srirang Deodhar, Senior Joint Replacement Surgeon, Dr Ashish Sheth, Senior Joint Replacement Surgeon and Dr Jayesh Patil, Senior Orthopedic & Joint Replacement Surgeon. 

Dr. Vikram Shah, who headed the team of surgeons who performed this extremely difficult procedure at Shalby, said, "People claim that knee replacement is not advisable in excessively obese individuals. This, I believe, is a myth. In 2010, we performed knee replacement surgeries on both legs of a 162 kg Jodhpur patient. He is currently 83 years old, and none of his legs have any knee related issues. Mrs. Shamisuddin's knee replacement surgery was likewise a success. She will be able to walk now, which will increase blood circulation, and in turn, help reduce the intensity of her elephantiasis. Obesity and knee osteoarthritis are inextricably linked. Because obesity limits people's activity, they tend to gain more weight, exacerbating the illness. They can walk after the knee replacement, which helps them lose weight and results in overall better health for the patient."

Dr. Vikram Shah describes the surgical procedures of this exceptional case, saying, "Her high weight has put significant pressure on her knees, leading to progression of her osteoarthritis." Furthermore, she had sustained acute fractures in her legs at her knees, complicating her case even further. During her earlier procedures, plates and implants were placed into her bones. When implants are very old, they get interwoven into the bone and are extremely difficult to remove. In addition, we wanted the surgery to be as little invasive as possible, so we used a specific resurfacing tibial base plate implant, which is used when the proximal tibia (bone immediately below the knee) is obstructed by implants used in earlier surgeries. This implant, which is made at our implant manufacturing facility in the United States, is being utilized for the first time in India. Keels are normally used to secure a total knee replacement implant, however, this does not. It is a keelless tibial base plate. This implant is manufactured by Shalby Advanced Technologies and is the first of its kind implant used ever in India. "

"I am a doctor, as is my sister, and my brother is pursuing medicine," adds Waddah Shamisuddin, the patient's son. We wanted to be certain because selecting a doctor and hospital for my mother was a challenging task. We chose Dr. Vikram Shah and Shalby after conducting extensive study and polling a large number of individuals. I'm glad her knee replacement went well, and we're looking forward to her gradually returning to regular life."

Mr. Ganpat Lodha, 83, who had a knee replacement performed by Dr. Vikram Shah in 2010 when he weighed 162, says, "I had consulted many doctors at different hospitals because my condition was unique due to my weight, but I felt secure only when I met Dr. Vikram Shah. Since my operation 12 years ago, I have had no problems with my knee."

About Shalby Limited:

Shalby Limited (Shalby Hospitals) is India’s leading multi-specialty hospital established by Dr. Vikram Shah, world-renowned joint replacement surgeon, and has over 28 years’ experience in delivering quality and affordable healthcare. It currently operates a chain of 11 multispecialty tertiary hospitals across India with an aggregate bed capacity of over 2,000 hospital beds. Shalby has a 4,000 plus in-house team of skilled doctors, surgeons and support staff with relevant industry experience and in-depth domain expertise, who have been leading the Company’s growth. It is the largest joint replacement centre in the world and performs more than 12,000 joint replacement surgeries a year. Under Dr Shah’s leadership, till date it has performed around  1,40,000 joint replacement surgeries.