Earlier in 2017 a team of veterinary surgeons from the Central Veterinary Clinic in Sofia, Bulgaria successfully carried out a first-of-its-kind bionic operation. A cat named Pooh recieved a pair of prosthetic hind legs.
The innovative and high-tech operation for the implantation of bionic exoprostheses was performed by Zlatinov at the Central Veterinary Clinic - Sofia. The operation involves bone implantation of titanium implants, attachment of specially designed external prosthetic legs for the patient.
Such intervention is done for the first time in Bulgaria. Veterinary surgeon Vladislav Zlatinov and his team carried out the operation that was previously only been done in Britain. Doctors relied on a few publications in scientific journals and with no commercial implants for animals available the prosthetic parts had to be custom-built.During the operation, the patient - a kitten called Pooh - was 10 months old. The animal lost its limbs in a car accident, but thanks to a team of specialists it got a new chance.
Pooh's limbs function has been restored after two interventions and a complex rehabilitation process that took more than 3 months.
The method used is known as ITAP - Intraosseus Transcutaneous Amputee Prosthesis and is currently under development and only routinely administered in two veterinary clinics around the world.
The scientist who introduced this method in veterinary medicine is professor Noel Fitzpatrick, from the UK. Fitzpatrick introduced ITAP in veterinary medicine, but the method subsequently served as an improvement in various human medicine approaches. The implementation of ITAP for treating people is a relatively rare case in which an achievement in veterinary medicine helps develop the bionics area for humanitarian specialists.
Pooh’s story received a wide response in the Bulgarian and wordwide media, and especially in social networks. Zlatinov added that he has launched a long-term project for the development and improvement of animal prosthetics.
At the end of the complex bionic surgery, Pooh had a pair of titanium legs implanted into his body. They are connected to external prostheses that can be changed much like shoes.
Pooh had to recover for six weeks before he could test out his new limbs.
After the intervention for placing implants on Pooh's hind paws, two cats and one dog have already been operated, again using the Fitzpatrick method - ITAP. Animals are in the process of recovery with good prognosis.
The project is supported by the animal protection organization Let's Adopt Bulgaria and Ortovit Medical, which is currently the only Bulgarian company specializing in the production of animal prosthetics.
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