Maiden Hip Replacement Surgery In Zim Provincial hospital

By Staff Reporter

The Gweru Provincial Hospital achieved a major feat when they performed a total hip replacement surgery, a first of its kind to be performed at provincial hospital level.

The surgery, under the logistic support from Medical Superintendent Dr Fabian Mashingaidze, was performed by Mr Brian Paketh, an orthopaedic surgeon and his team.

Gweru is the only Provincial Hospital among the eight provincial hospitals to perform total hip replacement for the first time.

Mr Brian Paketh who head the surgery team said, “We have a lot of patients with arthritis and it is fit to do it a provincial hospital so that we don’t refer them to central hospitals”.

“The initial operation was a success and the patient didn’t have any complication and the patient is recovering well and mobilising,” he said.

The first patient was an eighty-two old female patient.

“So far, the results are promising and this year alone we are scheduling to do another twelve, we can’t do that at once, because of the preparations and patient management that are done, and also resources required for the operation” said Mr Paketh.

According to Mr Paketh, the reason for hip replacement is that the bones will be grinding each other, a condition called osteoarthritis