Kochi: A private hospital here has successfully completed the first ever hip replacement surgery in Kerala using a 3D model of the hip, the hospital authorities said on Sunday.
A 60-year-old housewife from Kottayam was suffering from a painful hip and could not walk properly after she met with an accident in 2014.
The surgery was performed last week at VPS Lakeshore Hospital by a medical team led by Bipin Theruvil, specialist in hip replacements.
A special software was used to process the CT scans of the patient's fractured hip and printed the same by using a 3D printer which took 18-hours to print. The model was an exact copy in size.
The medical team performed a mock surgery on the 3D model in order to determine the position and exact size of the implants required.
"The final surgery lasted less than four hours and the patient was able to walk on the same day itself. This technology will revolutionize complex joint replacements as surgeons can achieve a high level of precision in complex cases," said Theruvil.
"The 3D printed hips offer surgeons an opportunity to plan and practice the surgery in complex cases and thereby saving operating time, reducing blood loss and in the end speeding up recovery," he added.