Osteotomy Complete Guide

This Blog contains a Complete guide about Osteotomy in Hyderabad, Telangana by Dr. Behera. Contains Detailed Information from What is an osteotomy? to Procedure & Recovery.

What is an osteotomy?

An osteotomy is a unique surgical procedure to reshape the bones. This type of surgery is needed in cases where there is a deformation in the bone, a damaged joint or sometimes to correct a short or long bone by shortening or lengthening to better align with the joints.

Who needs to undergo osteotomy?

A patient does not need to have severe sickness or painful symptoms to have an osteotomy.

Young and healthy people can have this surgery to prevent themselves from future knee replacement or hip replacement surgeries.

Some congenital bone deformations are also be fixed using an osteotomy so that the person can lead a normal lifestyle.

A doctor can recommend an osteotomy if the patient is suffering from arthritis damage in just one area of the knee.

Some of the regions that need osteotomy:

1. Knee:  either tibia (upper region of the joint bone) or femur (bone to the lower side of the joint) is cut so that there is a less worn out area of the articular cartilage to take the pressure off the weight-bearing part of the damaged knee joint.
2. Hip: Reshaping of the hip socket can be done to properly cover the full ball region of the hip joint.
3. Spine: In patients with a hunchback, a piece of a bone that is in the shape of a wedge is removed from the spine. This procedure can correct the hunched posture and the swayback of the patient. 
4. Chin: Some chins are very broad or squared. Along with help from a plastic surgeon many patients undergo osteotomy to narrow their chin bones to give a different cosmetic look.
5. Jaw: Jaws can be fixed for cosmetic surgery purposes or to line up the jawbones with their teeth structure. Some people have a problem with unaligned lower jaw making it difficult to bite their food. Correction by mandibular osteotomy can move the lower jaw to a perfectly aligned position.
6. Other: Other minor osteotomies can include straightening of the big toe, correction of extra fingers or toes, etc.

Procedure for Osteotomy

Osteotomy can be a complex surgery in some cases or minor corrective surgery in some cases but it is a very unique surgery that needs an expert surgeon to perform the procedure. A patient may need to get admitted into the hospital and therefore it is imperative to choose a medical center that is well equipped and has experience doing osteotomy procedures.

Anesthesia can be given and the surgeon can give the anesthesia options to the patient ahead of time. In many cases, patients are given general anesthesia to put them to sleep while the surgery happens. This is required in complex cases where the surgery can take a longer time. A spinal tap or anesthesia which makes you feel numb below the waist can be given If the procedure is to be done on the lower half of the body like the hip. Local anesthesia can also help in minor surgeries like osteotomy of toes etc.

An osteotomy procedure is done by an orthopedic surgeon. During the procedure, a small cut is made in the skin and a section of the bone is taken out using a surgical saw. A special type of guidewires is used to measure the bone and analyze the angles before the removal of the part of the bone. After surgically cutting the part, the open space can be filled up with bone graft or not depending on the procedure. A part of the pelvis bone can be used or sometimes even bone banks can donate a piece of bone for bone grafting purpose. Metal hardware like tiny screws and metal plates are used to hold the bones back in place. These materials are can be of different types so they can be taken out after healing or left permanently to integrate into the bone.

Once the procedure is done a patient might need to spend a night or two in the hospital or can be sent home depending on the type of surgery and the doctor’s advice.

Recovery after Osteotomy

Recovery after an osteotomy can take a while depending on the bone structure that is corrected. The site where the surgery is done might have some pain and be very sore. Doctors can put the patient on pain medicines until the soreness subsides. One may need to use braces or crutches or take extra care and not put any pressure on the bone until it heals.

• In the case of knee or hip osteotomy, the patient cannot walk for several months and has to be supported by crutches. The doctor will also recommend physical therapy sessions to strengthen the leg muscles while recovery.
• Strict diet restrictions can be recommended for jaw osteotomy such as an all-liquid diet for 6 weeks.
• In cases of osteotomy the big toe the patient might not be able to wear shoes at least 2 weeks or sometimes wear open sandals for as long as 6 weeks.
• It is better to avoid smoking as nicotine can prevent bones from fusing as a result of interfering with the healing process.
• It is also a good idea to reduce extra weight before the procedure as being overweight or high BMI(Body Mass Index) can increase the time it takes to recover from the osteotomy.

Osteotomy is a very unique and rare type of surgery that is not performed in many centers. Dr. Sanjib Kumar Behera is a renowned orthopedic surgeon Hyderabad with a prominent team in India who has performed the highest number of Osteotomy, with the best results comparable to internationally acclaimed centers.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding osteotomy, please check out doctorbehera.in and book an appointment to speak with Dr.Behera.

To read about Total Knee Replacement Surgery in Hyderabad Click Here

For Hip Fracture and Treatment Click Here

For Arthroscopy Surgery Click Here