- A Delhi woman lost part of her thigh bone in a road accident while shielding her infant
- Doctors used a staged reconstruction with antibiotic cement to control infection and stabilize
- The woman regained mobility and expressed relief at being able to walk and hold her child again
A 34-year-old Delhi woman who lost a portion of her thigh bone while shielding her infant during a road accident has regained the ability to walk after doctors reconstructed the missing bone using graft taken from her own body.
According to a statement by Max Super Speciality Hospital, the woman was treated following an advanced orthopaedic surgery at their unit in Shalimar Bagh. The woman had sustained severe open fractures of the femur (thighbone) and tibia (shinbone) after an auto-rickshaw overturned and fell on her.
The high-impact injury caused extensive soft-tissue damage and loss of bone fragments at the accident site, resulting in a segmental defect of the thigh bone, one of the most challenging forms of orthopaedic trauma, the statement issued on Wednesday said.
Senior orthopaedic surgeon Dr Simon Thomas, who led the treatment, said a staged reconstruction approach was adopted to stabilise the limb, control infection and preserve mobility.
“Because the fracture was open, a portion of the femur was physically lost at the accident site. In the first stage, we performed internal fixation and filled the bone gap with antibiotic-loaded cement to control infection and maintain stability,” he said.
Doctors said the antibiotic cement also helped form a biological membrane rich in growth factors, essential for bone healing. After six to eight weeks, once the wound had healed and the infection risk ruled out, a second surgery was performed.
“In the second stage, the cement spacer was removed and replaced with a combination of autologous bone graft and artificial bone graft. An additional plate was applied to ensure stability and promote bone union,” Thomas added.
The woman said she feared permanent disability after learning that part of her bone was missing. “Being able to stand, walk and hold my child again feels like a second life,” she said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
