David Umahi Federal University Teaching Hospital Uburu has successfully performed its first knee replacement surgical procedure barely two years of its existence.

The Arthroplasty procedure was carried out on a patient with bilateral knee osteoarthritis by the Orthopaedic department of the hospital.

Knee Arthroplasty is a surgical procedure for reconstruction of the knee joint to resurface a knee damaged by arthritis, to relieve pain and disability.

A team of surgeons led by Professor Udo Anyaehie, which also had Dr John Okorie and Dr Okechukwu Ogbonna both consultant Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgeons at DUFUTH as well as Dr Obilo Saviour a Consultant Anaesthetist, medical officers, our team of Nurses, Orthotic Technicians and other ancillary staff carried out the surgery on the 72 year old patient, Mrs Eucharia Umahi.

Commenting on the groundbreaking surgery, the Chief Medical Director of DUFUTH, Professor Uzoma Agwu described the process as a major breakthrough in the healthcare delivery system of the hospital, coming barely two months after the Orthopaedic department was set up.

She expressed delight that the patient happened to be the first beneficiary of the procedure in DUFUTH which she believed would motivate others who had otherwise thought that their loved ones may never access the intervention locally to renew their trust in the capacity of the home-based facilities and personnel in the hospital.

Prof Agwu thoroughly hailed the dedication, teamwork and passion displayed by the surgical team and promised not to take such sacrifices for granted.

The D-CMAC Clinicals and Critical Care DUFUTH, Dr Obilo Saviour noted that DUFUTH now have the facilities to undertake all procedures including knee replacements and other tertiary healthcare solutions, using techniques and modern options that are only possible at very few specialized hospitals in the Nigeria and urged Nigerians to take full benefits of these services.

Meanwhile, the patient is currently in a stable condition and speedily recuperating from the knee surgery which lasted for 3 hours and twenty minutes.