BENGALURU: Despite medical and surgical advances in the field of knee surgery, the normal practice for fractures or tears in the ligament, calcification or filling of water, has been open surgery. In a bid to make this more efficient, Bengaluru-based doctor Dr Chandrashekar P, Senior Consultant and head of department, Orthopaedics, at Sakra World Hospital, along with his team, developed a keyhole technique for the outside or lateral collateral ligament (LCL) of the knee.
Clinically referred to as Direct Lateral Portal and also known as “Bengaluru Chandrashekhar Portal”, it is an extension of an arthroscopic surgery developed for the first time in the world to address the health problems occurring in the LCL of the knee. LCL is the two surrounding connective tissues that connect the knee bones together, keeping it stable.
Explaining the surgery, Dr Chandrashekar said, “The knee is made up of four ligaments, two of which are on the sides. The keyhole surgery is meant for the outer portion of the ligaments on either side of the knee. Keyhole includes making a small hole or puncture in the knee which serves as a portal or passage for arthroscopic surgery. This is better than open surgery as it means less pain, less scarring, faster mobility and recovery for the patient. Without the knowledge about the portals, it becomes difficult to reach to this particular area of the knee and joint. “
“Patients can return to work, sports and office sooner than usual. We took two years to work on this and conduct research. It was recently reviewed and published by the Global Journal of Medical Research that serves as a knowledge-sharing purpose for medical fraternities globally. I name it so as I wanted to dedicate it to the people of Bengaluru and Karnataka,” he added.
The technique has been tried successfully on two patients so far. One was a 50-year-old woman who had pain in the left knee for one year. X-rays showed calcification in the LCL region. The other was a 54-year-old woman who had pain in the left knee for six months. She suffered from calcific deposits in the lateral side of the knee.