Breach Candy like my second home, says PM's surgeon

Breach Candy like my second home, says PM's surgeon
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

MUMBAI, OCT 9: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be back at work soon after his left knee joint surgery on Tuesday at the Breach Candy Hospital, orthopaedic surgeon Chittaranjan Ranawant, who will perform the operation, has said.

``The surgery will take nearly an hour. Vajpayee will soon be back attending work. I will not charge him for the surgery,'' Ranawat said.

He said that the operation was being performed at Breach Candy and not somewhere in Delhi because he was at ease there. ``I am well versed with the hospital administration as well as the subordinate staff since I visit the hospital every alternate year. It's my second home, my real home being ahospital in New York.''

Ranawant said the Prime Minister will be operated under regional anaesthesia, which means he will be awake and will be able to speak during the operation. ``Such operations are mostly carried out under regional anaesthesia,'' he said. Asked if the surgery was necessary, Ranawat said the decision had to be taken by the patient as well as the surgeon. ``I had a long discussion with Vajpayee, and it was our joint decision.''

Ranawant, who has performed 3,000 knee replacement surgeries, said the success rate is more than 90 per cent and the chances of infection less than one per cent. ``The patient can do well for about 10 years after the operation. On my experience, I can say that the patient can walk within five to 10 days after the operation. His progress will be faster, if he walks with a stick,'' he said.

``We have conducted all the necessary tests and the PM is fit for the operation on Tuesday. I had examined him a month ago and will supervise his post-operation recovery,'' he said.

Ranawant declined to speak on VIP patients he will operate in the same hospital in next two days.