SIMS Hospital Chennai gives a new lease of life to a 38-year old Tanzanian affected by Ameloblastoma
- Ends his 14 year old misery of pain, functional discomfort and social stigma in 14 days
Chennai,
Feb. 20, 2020: The Chennai based SIMS (SRM Institutes for Medical Science)
Hospital, one of the leading super speciality quaternary care hospitals in Tamil Nadu, put an end to a thirty-eight year old
Tanzanian patient’s pain and misery of 14 years caused by a more than 1 kg weighing Ameloblastoma in the
lower jaw. Lack of early medical intervention and diagnostic facility in his
country, made it difficult for him to chew and eat his food, which in turn
affected his overall quality of life significantly. With a defective and
continuously increasing lump in the jawbone, the Tanzanian patient was referred
to SIMS, Vadapalani, Chennai by his Government for a holistic treatment.
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Sitting (L-R) Dr Raju
Sivasamy, Vice President of SIMS Hospital; Dr. K. Sridhar, Head-Craniofacial,
Aesthetic and Plastic Surgery, SIMS Hospital; Mr. Omar Mohammed Omer, Patient; Mr.
Machano Issa Mohammed, Patient Attender; Dr. Krishnamourthy, Joint Director - Craniofacial,
Aesthetic and Plastic Surgery, SIMS Hospital
Speaking
on the medical condition and the technical procedure followed during the
treatment, Dr. K. Sridhar,
Head-Craniofacial, Aesthetic and Plastic Surgery, SIMS, said, “Our first
assessment revealed a huge ball sized tumour that was causing severe pain,
swelling and facial deformity for the Tanzanian patient. With initial
screenings though, we diagnosed the lump to be an Ameloblastoma that required complex
surgical correction, given its unusual size. During the initial virtual
observation and assessment we took into consideration and carefully evaluated
the key parameters including the size of tumor, the length of fibular graft needed,
and the shape of graft for precise calculations and further procedure. For, these
are the parameters that would determine the maximal restoration of his oral
function and appearance.
It
required a reconstruction of the entire mandible including both sides of the jaw.This
necessitated a 4 piece reconstruction having different angulation and
dimension. A complex virtual planning in computer was required to have a final
result for a natural appearance.
This
required a team approach having reconstructive plastic surgeons, maxillofacial
surgeons, specialists in implantology and a computer engineer, apart from a highly
skilled Aneasthesia team.
“Thus
began the whole treatment process of transferring a virtual plan to clinical
operation with a holistic approach to help that Tanzanian patient regain his
normal life, to eat well, become more socially acceptable sans the stigma. The
meticulous preparation with the key advanced 3-Dimensional CT techniques of
medical image processing and printing, planning of tumor resection, and fibular
resection for graft harvesting, graft shaping, and fixation, as well as
planning, designing and fabrication of the templates for clinical realization
of the plan, all were discussed to the last
details. Such fabricated virtual model significantly improves the quality and
efficiency of the surgery, with less time-consumed at the operation theatre and
the patient satisfaction with both the recovery of oral function and
appearance’.
Dr Raju
Sivasamy, Vice President of SIMS Hospital, spoke
about SIMS International collaborations that enhanced the overall medical
experience of every foreign patient. He highlighted how the Clinical skills of the surgeons at
SIMS are at par with those of the advanced countries and the dental medical tourism
in India is on the growth path with treatment facilities being much cheaper as
compared to the West.
He
also elaborated upon the processes to assist the overseas patient, starting
from the first call to the follow up on his return to his homeland, including
consultation, documentation, the proposed treatment and the relevant costs,
visa formalities to the pickup, admission into hospital, follow up right up to
discharge, drop at airport and follow through on the patient returning home.
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