104-year-old Saudi national undergoes double knee replacement surgery in city

With Tahir insisting on getting rid of the pain and undergoing a surgery, the father-son duo consulted Dr Sanjeev Jain, orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon, who agreed to operate. Dr Jain said in his 32 years of career, he has seen a handful of senior citizens above the age of 95 getting a bilateral knee replacement surgery done

Mumbai: At 104, a Saudi Arabian national underwent a successful bilateral knee replacement surgery at Dr LH Hiranandani Hospital-Powai on September 1. According to his sons, Tahir Ali Alhashim had advanced osteoarthritis that left him bedridden for the last five years.

104-year-old Saudi national undergoes double knee replacement surgery in city

“He is blind but always led an active and independent life. Since the time he was diagnosed with an advanced stage of osteoarthritis, he was not only bedridden but in pain. We consulted many doctors. Everyone said knee replacement surgery is a solution but discouraged it because of his age,” said Dai Ali Al Hasim, his elder son who accompanied him to Mumbai for the surgery.

With Tahir insisting on getting rid of the pain and undergoing a surgery, the father-son duo consulted Dr Sanjeev Jain, orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon, who agreed to operate. Dr Jain said in his 32 years of career, he has seen a handful of senior citizens above the age of 95 getting a bilateral knee replacement surgery done.

“He is the first above 100 to undergo a bilateral knee replacement surgery and that too at one go. In spite of being above 100, this patient had no medical issues except blood pressure. He was very positive from the beginning about the surgery and medically fit, so we decided to take him up for the surgery,” he said.

Dr Jain added that today, 15-20% of the patients he sees for knee replacement surgery are 81 years plus. “Since the life expectancy of people has increased it makes sense for them to go for such surgeries. But the problem arises when they have multiple comorbidities,” he said.

According to the doctors, Tahir has already been mobilised and can walk on his own to the bathroom. “We are happy that he is now pain-free and independent again,” said Dai, who is set to leave the city with his father this week.

Prof. (Dr.) Pradeep Bhosale, director, of arthritis and joint replacement, Nanavati Max Hospital -Vile Parle said surgery is usually the final choice for patients above 90 years requiring knee or hip replacement.

“Our aim is to manage these conditions medically. After a thorough evaluation, if the patient proves to be medically fit on multiple grounds, such as physical fitness to be able to tolerate anaesthesia and surgical period, possibility of rehabilitation and recovery, current mobility etc. only then we go ahead with the surgery,” he said.

Dr Bhosale added that they have seen an uptick in the number of elderly patients seeking knee or hip replacement surgeries. “We recently performed a successful joint replacement surgery on a 94-year-old man, who regained his mobility after the surgery. As most of these joint failures occur due to slippage inside the house, we recommend the family members install handles and anti-slippage mats on the washroom’s floors. It’s also advisable to clean the water spillage immediately to avoid slipping over it,” he said.