Woman back on feet after rare surgery, AP scheme foots bill

Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, Jun 16 (UNI) A private hospital here gave a fresh lease of life to a patient, who had been bedridden for the last six months, after performing a rare surgery on her spinal cord.

Bonthu Lakshmi (55) of Pallipalem village in Kajuluru Mandal could not use her legs due to tumour in the spinal cord.

The 10.3 x19.4 mm tumour is considered rarest among the rare as it occurs only in one out of one lakh people.

The success rate of this surgery is around ten per cent. But in her case, it was nearly cent per cent, claimed Dr Kondamuri Satyanarayana, chief of the Sai Raghavendra Super Specialty Hospital where the surgery was performed, while briefing the media.

He said the successful surgery and the follow-up physiotherapy treatment helped her to recover and gain fresh lease on life.

Normally, at any corporate hospital, the surgery cost around Rs 1.5 lakh. But it was done for Rs 25,000 under the Sri Rajiv Arogya Sri package at the hospital, he said.

Though doctors had advised surgery long back, Lakshmi could not afford the procedure and was confined to the bed.

However, the Rajiv Arogya Sri Scheme of the Andhra Pradesh Government helped her to foot the bill and get back on her feet.

She was operated upon three weeks ago and now recovering fast at the hospital.

Lakshmi is now able to move with the aid of a walker and expected to resume normal life within a couple of weeks.

UNI XR/AP KK HT1239