KUALA LUMPUR: A mother from Ulu Tiram, Johor is banking on public kindness to help fund her 11-year-old daughter's knee deformity surgery, which is estimated to cost RM20,000.
Housewife Suhayati Soryat said Nur Hanan Awatif Muhammad Hadi Khong, was diagnosed with right knee valgus known as Genu Valgum or "knock-knee", causing her right knee to bend inward, shortening her leg and making it difficult for her to walk since.
"When Hanan was nine, her knee started to bend in an odd way, and she had difficulty walking, running and playing.
"A checkup at the hospital revealed that Hanan had a small injury that made it difficult for her to walk normally."
Valgus knee is a lower leg deformity that exists when the bone at the knee joint is angled out and away from the body's midline.
Suhayati shared that said Hanan had previously undergone surgery at Gleneagles Hospital Kuala Lumpur, where a metal rod was inserted in the knee to fix the alignment and straighten the bone.
However, she said the hospital's consultant paediatrician Dr Abdul Razak noted that Hanan would require a second operation to remove the right femur implant and to perform epiphysiodesis on the left femur.
Epiphysiodesis is the surgical ablation of a physis to stop its future growth, generally used to correct a leg length discrepancy.
Suhayati explained that the second surgery was necessary because Hanan's right leg was one centimeter shorter than the left leg and both legs appeared unusual.
She further said her daughter has not attended school for about a year due to severe knee flexion.
"It sometimes crushed my heart, and I wanted to give up. Even after the initial operation, Hanan still has trouble walking normally and lives in constant fear."
Suhayati said her husband Muhamad Hadi Kong Abdullah, 46, who works as a lorry driver only makes around RM3,500 a month, not nearly enough to cover the surgery costs.
"Hanan needs RM20,000 to undergo surgery as soon as possible for the removal of the right femur implant and epiphysiodesis of the distal left femur.
"I am hopeful that this treatment will alleviate her suffering and mend her deformities so that she can walk normal as other children and resume her studies."
Dr Abdul Razak, elaborating on the impending surgery, said removing the metal rods in the knee will help Hanan heal and walk straighter as expected, and placing screws on the left leg knees will delay leg growth, which will bring both legs to normal length.
Those who wish to help can send cheques made payable to the Media Prima-NSTP Humanitarian Fund at Group Corporate Communications Department, Media Prima Bhd, Level 4, Anjung Riong, Balai Berita, 31 Jalan Riong, 59100 Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, with the patient's name written on the reverse side of the cheque.
The public may also deposit their donations to Bank Muamalat account number 1401-0008-8427-18 or Maybank current account 5141 0532 3170 and indicate the patient's name on the Recipients Reference or Other Payment Details fields.