The first meniscal transplant was successfully performed in Singapore on 12 April 2002. The surgical procedure was done by Dr Tan Jee Lim, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Sports Medicine Service, on a 17- year old student. The meniscus is a "C-shaped" pad in the knee between the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (lower leg bone) that acts as a shock absorber and makes the motion of the knee smooth.
Mr Nitesh Gurung damaged his meniscus beyond repair in a skateboarding accident and had difficulties walking from the pain and swelling. Dr Tan implanted a cadaveric graft to the knee using arthroscopic assisted methods (key-hole surgery). The procedure is suitable for young active patients who have lost their meniscus and would like to pursue an active lifestyle. A meniscal transplant also provides pain relief and reduces swelling.


Changi General Hospital's ENT Division bagged yet another award for its innovative research on obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). Dr Hsu Pon Poh, Associate Consultant, and Dr Alvin Tan, Registrar, won the Best ASEAN Research Paper using cephalometric (scientific measurement of the head) x-rays to diagnose OSA at the 10th ASEAN ORL (OtoRhinoLaryngology) Head and Neck Surgery Congress held from 27 to 29 January 2003.
The doctors analysed and quantified the differences in cephalometric parameters between patients with OSA and the normal population to identify the parameters that are good predictors for OSA. They also set up the first local OSA database in Singapore.

The doctors also derived the cut-off values for retro-palatal distance and retro-lingual distance (distance behind the tongue) that will help predict patients with OSA.
Dr Hsu Pon Poh won several awards in 2001 including Young Surgeons's Award 2001 at the 13th Biennial Congress of Asian Surgical Association and 35th Annual Combined Surgical Meeting when he came up with a quantitative method to determine upper airway obstruction.


Changi General Hospital conducted a 3-month capsule endoscopy clinical trial in February 2003 on 15 patients. Capsule endoscopy is useful in the evaluation of small bowel disorders where the results of conventional endoscopy and radiological studies are normal.
Acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding is associated with an overall mortality of 10 per cent. After initial stabilisation, the doctors will do an endoscopic evaluation and treat the bleeding area. However, in five per cent of cases, the source of bleeding remains obscure despite conventional methods such as gastroscopy, colonoscopy, push enteroscopy, small bowel series and angiography.
With capsule endoscopy, the entire small bowel can be directly visualised for the first time, facilitating early diagnosis and allowing timely intervention. Patients swallow a capsule (that contains a mini camera) that takes pictures of the long and narrow small intestine. The non-invasive procedure causes no discomfort and is convenient for patients. Although new in Singapore, capsule endoscopy is already practised in United States, Germany, Malaysia, Hong Kong and China. The new service is available to CGH patients.

 
 

 
 
 





The first truly multidisciplinary sports centre in Singapore, CSMC started operations in January 2003. Starting from a Sports Clinic in 2000 running once a week to treat those with sports injuries, the new CSMC has a full-fledged team.
Consultant Sports Surgeon, Dr Tan Jee Lim heads the CSMC team consisting of ex-national sailor and consultant sports physician Dr Ben Tan, a sports physiotherapist, sports trainer, dietitian etc meeting the health needs of professional and recreational sportsmen.
With the tagline “Recovery and Beyond,” CSMC aims to return athletes and other active individuals back to their sporting and physical activities quickly and safely. Patients at the CSMC can look forward to the latest diagnostic technology to achieve accurate diagnosis and biomechanical analysis, a fully equipped gym for rehabilitation and performance enhancement, with a multi-disciplinary team of experts.
Besides sports injuries, patients can also sign up for the 6-month Weight Loss programme at CSMC which includes Sports Physician consultations, dietary consultations and supervised gym sessions with the Physiotherapist or Sports Trainer.


The CGH's Hearing Aid Clinic was launched on the 17 June 2002. The Audiological services complement the functioning of the Otolaryngology (ENT) division. In the past, patients who need hearing aids were referred to private hearing aid dispensers.
The hearing aid clinic provides services such as hearing aid fitting, verification, counselling, ear mould making, hearing aid repair, etc. This new service enables the hospital to provide a one -stop service in

Audiological rehabilitation of hearing impaired patients. Patients who buy hearing aids from the Hearing Aid Clinic enjoy a $50 rebate. Elderly patients above 65 years old enjoy an additional $50 rebate.


A urinary continence clinic was set up by the Department of Urology on 30 October 2002. The Continence Clinic at the Clinical Measurement Unit run by Dr Pearllyn Quek, Associate Consultant Urologist provides a one-stop service for managing patients with stress incontinence, urge incontinence, total incontinence or overactive bladder symptoms such as frequency and urgency of micturition.


CGH Dermatology Service expanded with the recruitment of two more dermatologists in November 2003. Associate Consultant Dermatologist, Dr Eileen Tan, a hair and nail expert received specialised training at the University of British Columbia. Dr Tan started offering Hair Transplant Service to patients suffering from hair loss from 8 March 2003. Grafts of hair bearing tissue can be successfully transplanted from donor sites to the scalp or other hair loss areas to restore a bald patch.
Dr Colin Kwok, Consultant Dermatologist has a subspeciality in the field of photobiology. Dr Kwok was tasked with setting up the phototherapy service in CGH's Dermatology Services. Phototherapy is the use of artificial ultraviolet light in the form of light cabinets to treat skin diseases such as psoriasis, eczema, and vitiligo (white patches). It is an effective treatment for diseases that are extensive or does not respond to conventional methods of treatment.
 
 

 
 
 





The field of medicine is never static. Ongoing research and technological advances mean that the practice of medicine needs to change and evolve. The 4th CGH ASM, "Innovation and Evolution in Medicine", was held successfully on 23 to 24 August 2002.
A meeting dinner was held at the Grand Hyatt hotel. The highlight of the evening was the 3rd CGH Lecture, "The Role of the Doctor in the 21st Century: Saint, Scientist, Shopkeeper?" delivered by the Dean of NUS Medical Faculty, Prof Lee Eng Hin, who spoke on the evolving role of the clinician.
Besides lectures by eminent speakers, the programme included a trade exhibition, an oral free paper and poster competition for both clinical and paraclinical categories, ENT and Dermatology workshops for General Practitioners as well as a Wound Management and Dispensing workshop for nurses and clinic assistants.


Changi General Hospital organised the first Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (ACI) the workshop in region on 29 March 2003. The workshop provided an overview of the science and practical surgical techniques of ACI for orthopaedic surgeons with an interest in joint preservation techniques using tissue engineering. The morning session was a lecture series on the science behind ACI and the afternoon session, the art of doing it.
This is the very first cadaveric workshop conducted in our newly established Changi Skills Training Laboratory located at Basement 2.

The workshop was oversubscribed with a total of 21 participants registered for the workshop including participants from Malaysia, Philippines and Hong Kong. The workshop was organised under the auspices of the Singapore Orthopaedic Association (SOA) and Dr Khong Kok Sun, President of SOA, gave the opening address.


CGH organised a live surgical workshop "Tumescent Liposuction and Autologous Fat Microinjection: A Dermatologist's Experience on 20 November 2002 by Dr Gerald Berstein, Clinical Professor, University of Washington. Since 1973, Dr Berstein has treated thousands of patients and given lectures extensively at meetings of American Academy of Dermatology, The American Society of Dermatologic Surgery, The American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery and others.
Tumescent liposuction was first introduced by Dr Jeffrey Klein, a dermatologist. This new innovation technique is a safe, efficient alternative to more costly surgeries using general anesthesia. It is also found to be safer than liposuction under general anaesthesia and results in fewer complications. While tumescent liposuction remove fat at unwanted areas, autologous fat microinjection (fat transfer) is another innovative outpatient procedure to transfer fat from one anatomical site into another.