Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

For the first time in Bulgaria

11-year-old girl will move her arm through a 3D printed individual prosthesis

3
Photo: UMBAL Eurohospital Plovdiv

For the first time in Bulgaria, an 11-year-old girl will be able to move her shoulder and arm again - thanks to a unique operation in which a tumor was removed and an individual 3D prosthesis was placed, reports the UMBAL Eurohospital Plovdiv. The child had a malignant tumor on the right scapula, involving the right humerus.

The team of leading orthopedic surgeons removed the malignant tumor by total resection, removing the right scapula and the upper edge of the right humerus of the young patient in the department of orthopedics and traumatology of the medical institution. Surgeons replaced the removed scapula and humerus with a 3D-printed endoprosthesis with a double-hinged joint for the shoulder, created especially for the 11-year-old girl.

The prosthetic device is custom-made for the girl after a previously prepared scanner with 3D reconstruction. The prosthesis is made of titanium, with a diamond coating and is wrapped with a textile tube.

The operation was performed by a team of doctors from the departments of "Orthopedics and traumatology" and "Anaesthesiology and intensive care" of Eurohospital Plovdiv under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Vladimir Stavrev MD and Prof. Dr. Lyuben Stokov MD. A specialist in vascular surgery also participated in the team.

A year and a half ago, the same team saved the leg of a 4-year-old child with a customized double-growing tumor knee endoprosthesis. With the current operation, thanks to the innovative technical solution, the girl is expected to move her upper right limb without a problem, after the necessary rehabilitation.

The 11-year-old girl is from Pleven, but has been living in Plovdiv for several months for treatment. Preoperative chemotherapy was performed according to an appropriate protocol. After being discharged, the patient will continue with chemotherapy.

The unique surgical intervention and the expensive prosthesis were fully covered by the National Health Insurance Fund.


Read also:


Compiled by Gergana Hrischeva




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

Gallery

More from category

Balkan developments

Students block the entrances to the Radio and Television of Serbia For 12 days now, students and citizens have been blocking the entrances to Serbia’s national radio and television broadcaster (RTS) in protest against how the state media is..

published on 4/25/25 11:33 AM
Aaron Willem

Bulgaria in a Special Corner of the Library in Brussels’ Schaerbeek District

In the Schaarbeek municipality of Brussels, there is a small corner of Bulgaria inside the Sophia Municipal Library, housing a valuable collection of Bulgarian books. Librarian Aaron Willem played a key role in setting up the Bulgarian section of the..

published on 4/23/25 1:26 PM
Pope Francis in Bulgaria in 2019

Catholics in Bulgaria fondly remember their meeting with Francis – the Pope of peace and mercy

Shepherd of the soul, priest of all with open hearts, modern prophet – these are some of the definitions with which Pope Francis remains in the memory of people regardless of affiliation and faith. In 2019, he visited Bulgaria,..

published on 4/22/25 4:30 PM