Lal Ram Chuana was like any other 18-year-old — a regular on the soccer field and a live wire in college. But two years ago, the Mizo youth suffered an infection that led to deformation of his left hip, resulting in shortening of his left leg.

Chuana had to walk with crutches and suffered bouts of severe pain. He, however, is now ready to go back to college without crutches, thanks to a new bone-preserving, minimally-invasive joint replacement surgery.

“A usual hip joint replacement was not desirable, considering Chuana’s age. The new procedure will allow him to lead a normal life,” said Chandrasekhar Dhar, consultant orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon at Calcutta Medical Research Institute. He led the team of doctors that performed the surgery.

The bone-preserving artificial joint used, Proxima, is half as long as a conventional artificial joint. It can be implanted using the minimally-invasive procedure, which causes less damage to the bones. “Proxima allows the patient even to squat. The chance of dislocation is minimal,” the surgeon stated.

Such surgeries need less tissue and bone dissection than the traditional method, said Buddhadeb Chatterjee of Apollo Gleaneagles Hospitals.