Hailing from Arunachal Pradesh, Chanda was abandoned as a child, as she suffered from Clubfoot disease, a physical deformity in which the foot is twisted out of shape or position.
"Never celebrated my birthday till now. But from this year, this day is going to be my day of celebrations," said 13-year-old Chanda, who for the first time in her life stood properly with her feet pointed in the right direction. Hailing from Arunachal Pradesh, Chanda was abandoned as a child, as she suffered from Clubfoot disease, a physical deformity in which the foot is twisted out of shape or position.
She was brought up in an orphanage in Arunachal Pradesh where she was identified by two French women who noticed her deformity and decided to get her treated. Her feet had turned completely backward due to the neglect and no medical attention for so long.
"Since my childhood, I used to have pain in my legs. The other children in the orphanage used to be surprised after looking at my legs. They all had their legs positioned in the correct way, while mine were twisted. I used to wear a special shoe for my deformity," said Chanda with a smile on her face.
A dance lover, Chanda was brought to Max hospital in Saket in November 2017, where a 3-stage complex surgery was performed on her in which her feet were re-structured.
Being one of the most common birth defects, India registers almost 50,000 cases of Clubfoot children every year.
"While the disease is very common, what made it rare was the time. 13 years is a long time for a child to be treated for this. At a time when technology and awareness are at its peak, to see a 13-year old child with neglected deformity is surprising," said Dr Manoj Padman, Director & Head - Paediatric Orthopaedics, Max Hospital, Saket.
During the entire treatment, the aim of the doctors was to straighten the feet while maintaining the length and the size too. Doctors had to break the bone to straighten the feet and only one foot could be done at a time. It took three months for the doctors to straighten a single foot.
"The surgery was complex as we had to break the bones to align the twisted foot. After the surgery, the feet have been rectified which will fit into a normal pair of shoes. The marks on her legs will fade away with time and she will walk normally," added Dr Padman.
Excited to be back at her house, Chanda has all her plans ready. A die-hard fan of Salman Khan, she will be going to watch his movies with her family at the orphanage.
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