Mr Girish Swamy

NNUH consultant and team performs life changing surgeries to children in India

NNUH consultant and team performs life changing surgeries to children in India A Consultant Spinal Surgeon from the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) has recently returned from India where he performed corrective surgery on children with complex scoliosis. Mr Girish Swamy was joined by retired NNUH Consultant Spinal Surgeon Mr Bob Crawford, former President of the British Scoliosis Society, and two other surgeons from Italy and Palestine. They were invited by Operation Straight Spine Trust, a charity which funds surgical and medical care for underprivileged children with musculoskeletal diseases in India. They were also joined by Joanne Siliprandi, Surgical Care Practitioner in Spinal Surgery at NNUH and Michael Farrow, Orthopaedic Department Practitioner at Spire hospital in Norwich. Scoliosis is a condition where the spine twists and curves. Without corrective surgery patients can live in severe pain, disability and can suffer from recurrent chest infections and heart problems. It also leads to severe psychological and social distress. The team spent a week in Kolkata and operated on 11 children aged between two and 18, from India, Nepal and Bangladesh. They performed growth rod insertion in very young children and more definitive fixations in older patients to correct and straighten the spine. Each operation can take more than eight hours and are extremely complex because the work is carried out so close to the spinal cord and the spinal nerves. The operations were observed by over 25 other surgeons from the three countries and nursing staff from Kolkata were also given specialist training in managing these complex patients. On the last day, the team lectured at the Kolkata Spine Deformity Conference at the Jagannath Gupta Institute of Medical Sciences and Hospital (JIMSH). Mr Girish Swamy said: “Scoliosis is a condition which can be treated, but with highly specialised care and surgery. Without an operation, patients struggle with day-to-day life and can become severely disabled, so it really is life changing. Without the charity funding, these underprivileged children wouldn’t have been able to have these complex and expensive surgeries. All the operations were successful, and the local team were very impressed and grateful for our teaching too and would like us to go back next year. My colleagues and the wider spinal team at NNUH are excited and would love to help again.”

#cervicaldiscreplacement #surgeoneducation | Synergy Spine Solutions

On Friday, Synergy Spine Solutions brought together surgeons at the Royal College of Surgeons in London for our first UK cervical total disc replacement (cTDR) round table. A special thank you to Prof. Neil Duggal, Mr Girish Swamy, Mr Dan D’Aquino, and Mr Evan Davies for leading thought-provoking discussions on complication management, motion preservation, and the role of cTDR in practice. We’re grateful to every delegate who joined, shared their perspectives, and helped make the day a valuable exchange of knowledge for the spine surgery community. #CervicalDiscReplacement #SpineCommunity #SurgeonEducation

Complex scoliosis surgery charity

A Scoliosis team from NNUH, led by Girish Swamy, Consultant Orthopaedic and Spinal Surgeon, has returned from a trip to India where, for the second year running, they performed corrective surgery on children with complex scoliosis. 2Girish was joined by two other surgeons from Italy and Palestine. They were invited by Operation Straight Spine Trust, a charity which funds surgical and medical care for underprivileged children with musculoskeletal diseases in India. The Norwich team included Charlotte El-Labany, Scoliosis Co-ordinator and Advanced Nurse Practitioner at NNUH; Emmanuel Gavan, Theatre team Leader in Orthopaedic Surgery, and Sergio Cecchelli, Surgical Care Practitioner at Spire hospital in Norwich. “Scoliosis is a condition where the spine twists and curves,” said Girish. “Without corrective surgery, patients can live in severe pain, disability and can suffer from recurrent chest infections and heart problems. It also leads to severe psychological and social distress. Within the rural parts of India, this can be a significant taboo.” The team spent a week in Kolkata and operated on eight children aged 5-17 from India and Bangladesh. They’ve operated on 19 children in total, including 11 surgeries last year. They performed growth rod insertion in very young children and more definitive fixations in older patients to correct and straighten the spine, including re-do operations. Each operation can take from six to eight hours or longer and is extremely complex because the work is carried out so close to the spinal cord and the spinal nerves. The operations were observed by over 20 other surgeons from the sub-continent and nursing staff from Kolkata were also given specialist training in managing these complex patients. Charlotte also spoke about the pathways to perform these surgeries safely, educating the ITU staff, while Emmanuel and Sergio educated the theatre nurses on the principles of theatre management. On the last day, the team also lectured at the Kolkata Spine Deformity Conference at the Jagannath Gupta Institute of Medical Sciences and Hospital (JIMSH). Girish delivering a Lecture“Scoliosis is a condition which can be treated, but with highly specialised care and surgery,” added Girish. “Without an operation, patients struggle with day-to-day life and can become severely disabled, so it really is life-changing. Without the charity funding, these underprivileged children wouldn’t have been able to have these complex and expensive surgeries. All the operations were successful. “The local team and the wider community in Kolkata were very impressed and grateful for our continued support and for providing this service two years in a row. The local media have widely applauded the efforts of the Norwich team and for educating the rural population about the condition. My colleagues and the wider spinal team at NNUH will continue to support the scoliosis surgery charities.”