By Abdallah el-Kurebe
For the first time in the whole of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states, the Bone and Joint Orthopedic Hospital, a private entity based in Sokoto has successfully performed a hip replacement on Hajiya Rukayya Muhammad (65) of Wamakko local government area of the state by three surgeons.
The Bone and Joint Orthopedic Hospital has therefore joined other orthopedic hospitals in Abuja, Lagos and other places in the country to perform that kind of surgery.
Dr. Muhammad Oboirien, who is the Medical Director of the Hospital said that the woman had damaged hip, which resulted from severe arthritis,
The surgery that lasted two and half hours, according to Dr. Oboirien corrected the limping posture of the patient.
According to him, “Our patient came here limping and in serious discomfort two months ago and was also finding it difficult to walk because of the problem. We conducted an x-ray of the pelvis and noticed that one of her hip bones was damaged and as such required to be replaced.”
The Doctor further said that it was the first time a joint replacement was done in the whole of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states, adding,
“So, we procured the implant from Lagos and the hip replacement was carried on successfully on April 21. As I am talking to you now, the patient is stable and has started walking with a walker,” Oboirien said.
He explained that the surgery costs between N700,000 and N750,000 including implant, drugs and other things, which is cheaper in Nigeria compared to Dubai, India and other European countries where it costs about N2 million, including airfare and accommodation.
“The implication is that hip replacement surgery and other services are available in Lagos and a few places at a lesser cost than for a patient to travel abroad. Many Nigerian surgeons have undergone training on joint replacement in India, Pakistan and Europe.
“In fact, in the past, nobody thought joint replacement could be carried out in the country but now it is readily available here in Sokoto,” he explained.
Oboirien appealed to the Federal Government to embark on an enlightenment campaign to discourage people from traveling abroad for ailments that could be easily treated in the country.
