Groundbreaking Osseointegration surgeon Associate Professor Munjed Al Muderis: Keynotes at Osseointegration Day
The surgery provides above and below knee amputees with a replacement leg carefully designed to be as close to the human anatomy as possible. Professor Al Muderis even commented himself that:
"they were not aware at the outset of the impact of sensory enhancement and proprioception a patient would gain following surgery".
Osseointegration provides greater mobility, comfort and quality of life. The procedure involves an implant being inserted which integrates the existing bone allowing a simple, pain free connection between the stump and prosthesis.
Michael Swain MBE, discusses Ossointegration and the effect it has had on his life.
Professor Al Muderis trained initially as a hip surgeon but went on to scrutinise the options available to patients for Osseointegration. He subsequently developed a number of techniques and innovative and ingenious developments, in particular with regards to the materials being used and to incorporate knee and hip replacements into the technology. He has also advanced his techniques so much so that the patient will only need single stage surgery and will be partially weight bearing after just three days. The majority of patients are unilateral above knee. He's also operated on a number of bilateral amputees and 8 patients with the added complication of a total knee or hip replacement. All as a result of trauma or genetic disorder.
Dorset Orthopaedics have been working closely with the Professor to gain an in depth understanding of the technology so as to provide seamless rehabilitation, offering stage 2 & 3 rehabilitation back in the UK. A patientcan make the journey home within two weeks of surgery.
Caroline a former patient of Professor Al Muderis kindly shared her experience.
She was involved in a motorbike accident 7 years ago losing her arm and lower leg. She struggled for years with her prosthesis and had the added difficulty of only having one arm for donning and doffing. Over the years she had extensively researched the various options available to her. Eventually, she made the lifelong commitment to Osseointegration in October 2015 and hasn't looked back.
"Standing and balancing now naturally happens. I've had no pain and no socket issues. It's been absolutely life changing. Being spatially aware and not having to constantly look at the ground has made a huge difference. I can already walk 3 miles and the only thing that holds me back are muscles I haven't used for years tiring. My aim is to walk 10k within a year."
She made contact with Professor Al Muderis 3 months for the initial rigorous patient checks before travelling to Sydney for surgery. All initial consultations were over Skype and the Professor importantly had access to Caroline's X-rays and past medical history. She commented that her gait had improved, it's incredibly easy to manage - giving us a demonstration of how simple it is to don and doff with a simple Alan key and importantly it gives her rotational stability.
Like any other surgery there can be complications which are explained to every candidate in full but Professor Al Muderis' secret to success is clearly his passion, aftercare and commitment to his patients.
"Everything is patient specific with a highly experience multidisciplinary team on hand to deal with any questions or problems."
Fieldfisher, we understand, are the only law firm to have secured funding for our clients to access this life changing treatment. We are passionate and driven to ensure that our clients cases are bespoke to them as individuals and all options are explored to make help to make their lives as easy as possible in the hardest of times.
To find out more about Dorset Orthopaedic, click here
Read about how we've already helped our clients take advantage of the pioneering work being done by Professor Al Muderis in Australia. See our example cases below.