TRAILBLAZING Adrian Wilson is also helping to pioneer a technique which is set to change the way knee osteotomies are performed.

Mr Wilson is working with Imperial College London on a cutting-edge procedure, in which an exact replica of the patient’s leg is created using a 3D printer. This can then be used as a cutting guide to indicate, with pinpoint accuracy, where incisions should be made.

So far, three patients have been treated at BMI The Hampshire Clinic with the help of these guides, and it is hoped that the first NHS operation to involve these guides will soon take place at Basingstoke hospital.

Mr Wilson said: “It’s a very clever way that we can make sure the incisions are exactly right. Currently, surgeons use X- rays and guidewires but this is much more precise.

“It’s better for the surgeons and better for the patients – it’s a very exciting development. We just need to cut through all the red tape before it becomes available on the NHS, but hopefully this should be happening very soon.”

Mr Wilson said that Basingstoke has been at the forefront of osteotomies for years. The procedure, in which a bone is surgically cut to realign the bone, fell out of favour in the UK several decades ago because of unsophisticated instrumentation and slow recovery time.

But in Germany, great strides were made in honing the procedure, and seven years ago, interest was rekindled after a team from Basingstoke began looking into these new techniques.

Since then, an internationally-renowned master class has been held each year at Basingstoke hospital, and patients from all over the UK are now referred to the hospital for an osteotomy.

Mr Wilson said: “I’m very proud of the work that we do here.”

He said that a database, created to follow the progress of patients following the operation, has yielded several very interesting results, including the fact that the elderly and overweight react well to the procedure, contrary to what was previously thought.

He said: “We have seen some very interesting results. Over-all, this is a very exciting time.”