Mrs XYZ is a senior film star. She had lived with back pain for more than 3 years. She had recently developed significant leg pain and difficulty in walking. It wasn’t until she came to the Bombay Hospital where she received the proper diagnosis and successful back surgery that helped her return to a pain-free life. “There were times when I had to spend a few days in bed after I did a lot of walking or even after I carried light shopping bags.”
Says Mrs XYZ. Throughout the years, she tried many treatments to alleviate her back pain, but none brought complete relief. “I just figured that I would have to live with this pain for the rest of my life,” she said. She was in agony and it just kept getting worse.
By February, she was experiencing numbness in her left foot and was having difficulty walking more than 50 metres. A neighbour recommended her to consult Dr Arvind G Kulkarni for her problems. She came to the clinic where she was examined thoroughly. “Using advanced imaging technology to confirm what we already suspected, we diagnosed her with Spondylolisthesis with spinal stenosis. In this condition, one spinal bone (vertebra) slips on the other and hence the nerves that go through the spinal canal get pinched (compression). This condition, which is easily treatable, can cause significant disability in terms of causing back and leg pain, numbness in the legs and in advanced situations, loss of urinary and bowel control. She was still interested in acting and just could not do the things she wanted to do.”
To help her get relief from her pain, Dr. Kulkarni recommended surgery that would relieve the pressure on her spine. “We recommended decompression and because of the slippage (spondylolisthesis), a fusion.
The fusion is done by taking synthetic bone materials and transplanting them into the spine and holding them there with high quality screws and rods.” The procedure was done with the latest minimal invasive small incision technique under the guidance of microscope and spinal navigation.
After her procedure, she was given proper physiotherapy to help regain her strength and range of motion.
Seven days after she was back home taking walks outdoors, and taking part in activities around the house. “My back pain and the numbness were gone right away. Ten days after my surgery, I was able to go for shopping and lift light objects without any difficulty. I was back to acting and shooting after 2 weeks” she says.
Since her surgery, she has been able to return to her everyday activities and her favorite activities.” I feel blessed to live in a time in history that has the technology to make me whole again and able to live and enjoy life!” she says.
DrArvindKulkarni