A surgeon at Yale New Haven (Conn.) Hospital performed the state’s third-ever awake ankle surgery, Yale Daily News reported April 25.
All three surgeries have been performed by Arriana Gianakos, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at YNHH. Wide-awake ankle surgery can reduce the need for pain medication and narcotics, decreasing potential risks associated with general anesthesia while offering a more rapid recovery for patients.
According to the report, Dr. Gianakos began the procedure with local anesthetic and tested it by asking the patient for live feedback. The procedure lasted 35 minutes and was made possible by new technology developed by Dr. Gianakos herself. She utilized a smaller, 1.9-millimeter camera, half the size of previous cameras, allowing for smaller incisions and more flexibility into joints and tendons.
