Thiruvananthapuram | In a relief for Spinal Muscular Atrophy patients, a government medical college in Kerala has launched an innovative surgery to correct the spinal deformity among SMA patients.

The surgery for Scoliosis, an abnormal spine curvature caused by back muscle weakness, was conducted at the Government Medical College Hospital here, a first of its kind in the government sector.

The surgery was conducted on Thursday under the supervision of the Orthopedic Department, a statement from the Health department said here on Saturday.

The surgery was performed on a 14-year old girl, a SMA patient from Kozhikode native who has been confined to the wheelchair for the past 11 years due to the rare disease, it said.

The eight-hour-long surgery was complicated but successful and Health Minister Veena George congratulated the team of doctors and the medical team who led the procedure, the statement said.

The girl is now recovering well at the hospital.

George had convened a meeting in January this year to launch the facility for such a surgery in the government health sector, it said.

The surgery, which costs Rs 15 lakh in private hospitals, was done free of cost in the government medical college, it said.

The Kerala government had already launched a dedicated clinic at the SAT Hospital in the Medical College campus here for the treatment of SMA patients, the statement added.