A 22-year-old HIV-positive man with spinal tuberculosis got a new lease on life after undergoing a four-hour surgery, which was streamed live as part of an international event hosted online, the organisers said on 30 August.

As the number of cases of spine-related issues has gone up during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Association of Spine Surgeons of India (ASSI) held a three-day programme, which included instructional courses on spine and live spine surgeries. The event was held from August 27-29. On the third day of the event, surgeons performed the four-hour live surgery, giving the patient a new lease of life, a spokesperson of the ASSI said.

The 22-year-old had developed lumbosacral tuberculosis due to his immuno-compromised condition and was suffering for the last couple of months with an infection in the lower spine. This had restricted his ability to walk, sit and control urine, while he suffered excruciating pain in the body, the organisers of the event said in a statement.

When he visited the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC), his MRI was performed after sedating him with anaesthesia and he was diagnosed with lumbosacral tuberculosis, a destructive form of tuberculosis that is more common in children and young adults, they said.

The surgery was performed by a team of spine surgeons using modern technology like O-arm and navigation, and was witnessed online by 25 international and over 50 Indian experts, besides around 200 delegates, the statement said. Since the patient was also HIV positive, the surgeons took the universal precautions of ceasing the transmission of the deadly virus, it said.

A couple of hours after the procedure, the patient was able to sit and stand without any support, with no pain and complete control on his urinal urge, the organisers claimed. The ASSI held the event in partnership with the Spinal Cord Society and the ISIC.

There were six master class sessions on MISS using tubular retractors, complications in cervical spine surgery, cervical disc replacement (CDR), degenerative scoliosis, cervicothoracic junction and surgical radiology. Also, 36 case-based discussions on degenerative thoracic myelopathy, degenerative cervical myelopathy, spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis and failed back syndrome, among other topics, were held.