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SICOT e-Newsletter

Issue No. 57 - June 2013

Fellowship News

Hiranandani Orthopaedic Medical Education (HOME) Research Fellowship Report

Chintan R. Hegde
SICOT Associate Member – Mumbai, India

While I was pursuing my trauma training at a renowned centre in Mumbai, India, I realized that it was time for me to set my goals right and decide on my specialty in the ever growing field of orthopaedic surgery. As all young aspiring orthopaedic surgeons, I too was attracted towards Arthroplasty surgeries from the beginning of my postgraduate training.

I had heard about Hiranandani Orthopaedic Medical Education (HOME), a research division of the Department of Orthopaedics at the Dr L.H. Hiranandani Hospital in Mumbai, India, through colleagues and through reading about the amount of research work coming out of this department under the supreme leadership of Dr Vijay D. Shetty, a renowned hip and knee surgeon, and a dedicated academic with a great inclination for research. I knew this was the perfect place for me to observe specialised hip and knee surgeries, learn the ins and outs of research and to improve my orthopaedic skills in every aspect.


Clinical Work

I joined HOME as a Clinical Research Fellow for a period of one year from 1 February 2012 to 1 February 2013, and Dr Vijay D. Shetty was my mentor. He takes a keen interest in nurturing new talent and shows them the right direction for the future. He took me through the basics of research, the quality and type of work being done at this centre. I was handed a crystal clear job format of this one-year fellowship on day one.

Dr Shetty made me in charge of two projects and guided me through each and every step of publishing these projects. Both projects have been accepted and published in an international journal. Another good part of this fellowship is that, apart from active research work, it also involves clinical work including operating as a first assistant.

I got to see both cruciate substituting and cruciate retaining type of knee surgeries, knee arthroscopic surgeries, advanced hip reconstruction surgeries and a variety of trauma cases in this period of one year. I also had the opportunity to be trained in Computer Assisted (Navigation) Knee surgeries.

During my tenure as a fellow, I was actively involved in the first ever IBOM (International Biologic Orthopaedic Meet) held under the guidance of Dr Vijay Shetty in Mumbai, India, in the month of April. We had eminent international and national faculty attending this meeting.


IBOM team with Dr Shetty

Then came the SICOT Instructional Course lectures, organised by Dr Shetty and Dr Ashok Johari at the Dr L.H. Hiranandani Hospital. I was actively involved in the organising and scientific committee.

The HOME department also organised the CAD-2012 challenges and debates in complex arthroplasty under the guidance of Dr Sanjeev Jain, a renowned joint replacement surgeon.

With Dr Sanjeev Jain at CAD-2012

I had the opportunity to attend the JBJS (British) Indian reviewers' meeting at Chennai, India and to meet editors of this reputed journal. It helped me understand the objectives and functioning of the journal. I also attended two primary total knee replacement workshops during my fellowship.


Publications & Presentations

I have three papers published and many more projects from HOME submitted to internationally indexed journals:
  1. Outcome of subvastus approach in elderly nonobese patients undergoing bilateral simultaneous total knee arthroplasty: A randomized controlled study (2013): Indian Journal of Orthopaedics: 47(1)45-49.
  2. Use of bone graft substitute in the treatment for distal fractures in elderly (2012): Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol DOI 10.1007/s00590-012-1057-1.
  3. The “Shetty test” in ankle injuries: validation of a novel test to rule out ankle fractures (2012): Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol DOI 10.1007/s00590-012-1069-x.
I had the following presentations at national and international meetings during the year:
  1. Paper presentation at Asia-Pacific Orthopaedic Association (APOA) Golden Jubilee congress, New Delhi: 4 October 2012 on “Use of bone graft substitute in the treatment for distal radius fractures in elderly”.
  2. Poster presentation at Asia-Pacific Orthopaedic Association (APOA) Golden Jubilee congress, New Delhi: 3-6 October 2012 on “The Shetty test in ankle injuries: validation of a novel test to rule out ankle fractures”.
  3. Paper presentation at Combined 33rd SICOT & 17th PAOA Orthopaedic World Conference, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: 28-30 November 2012 on “Plantar fasciitis: a prospective comparative study to compare the efficacy of corticosteroid therapy with platelet-rich plasma therapy”.
  4. Poster presentation at Combined 33rd SICOT & 17th PAOA Orthopaedic World Conference, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: 28-30 November 2012 on “Use of bone graft substitute in the treatment for distal radius fractures in elderly”.
  5. Poster presentation at Combined 33rd SICOT & 17th PAOA Orthopaedic World Conference, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: 28-30 November 2012 on “The Shetty test in ankle injuries: validation of a novel test to rule out ankle fractures”.

Outside Clinical Work, Travelling & Recreation

I also had an opportunity to accompany Dr Vijay Shetty to the Mahe Islands, Seychelles, for a knee replacement mission in the month of August, where we successfully performed 28 total knee replacements in three and a half days, which is a record by itself and was well appreciated by the Seychelles government. During our one-week stay at the Seychelles, we engaged ourselves into some adventure activities too, such as deep-sea diving. This truly was my best experience until now and I sincerely thank Dr Shetty for giving me this opportunity of a lifetime.


Dr Shetty and me with the Vice-President of the Seychelles


All ready for our first dive

I also had the chance to travel to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for the Combined 33rd SICOT & 17th PAOA Orthopaedic World Conference to present my work on an international stage. I also travelled to many places in India to present our work at various international and national meetings held here during the last year.

I wholeheartedly thank my guide, Dr Vijay Shetty, who, apart from being a highly competent surgeon, is also extremely considerate and helpful. He is a very good teacher and an excellent guide. I sincerely thank him and Dr Sanjeev Jain for being such great hosts. The experience and knowledge I have gained from this fellowship has changed my outlook towards orthopaedic practice and research in particular. I strongly recommend this fellowship to all young surgeons who wish to learn and make an active contribution to orthopaedic research.

I was awarded the Clinical Research Fellowship in Advanced Hip & Knee Surgery on 31 January 2013 by the Department of Orthopaedics at HOME.


Dr Y. Gawai, Dr Sanjeev Jain and Dr Vijay Shetty awarding me the certificate of the HOME fellowship