Dr. Deepak Sharan
National Award for city orthopaedic surgeon
Dr. Deepak Sharan has won the 2008 National Award for the Best Individual Working for the Cause of Persons with Disabilities. The award was presented by the Vice President of India at New Delhi on December 3, 2008, on the occasion of the International Day of Disabled Persons.
Dr. Deepak Sharan is an Orthopaedic Surgeon and Rehabilitation Specialist and is the Medical Director of RECOUP Neuromusculoskeletal Rehabilitation Centre, Bangalore. Dr. Sharan has supplemented 17 years of clinical experience in India, UK and USA in Neuromusculoskeletal Rehabilitation with a wide-ranging knowledge and qualifications in Biomechanics, Ergonomics, Orthopaedic Engineering, and Rehabilitation Technology.
The award recognises Dr. Sharan for developing a Surgical Procedure called Single Event Multilevel Lever Arm Restoration and Anti Spasticity Surgery (SEMLARASS) that has revolutionised the management of Cerebral Palsy, which is the commonest type of disability seen in India.
The greatest impact of SEMLARASS has been in the lives of people with severe disabilities, e.g., spastic quadriplegia, athetosis and dystonia for whom no effective treatment is otherwise available and most remains bed bound or wheelchair bound. Unfortunately, such people comprise the vast majority of over 25 lakh Indians with Cerebral Palsy. After SEMLARASS several of them have started walking independently in the community.
Dr. Sharan has performed surgeries and rehabilitation free of cost on children with Cerebral Palsy who came from weaker economic backgrounds. Of the 600 children with Cerebral Palsy who have undergone SEMLARASS so far, approximately 25% were operated free of cost.
Recently he has performed surgery on more than 20 children from economically backward areas of Kerala with great success. Children suffering from cerebral palsy from weaker sections of the society are screened during camps, which are conducted on regular basis, surgeries performed and rehabilitation is provided so that they have a chance to be included in the mainstream.
Dr. Sharan was earlier honoured by the then President of India, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam in 2005 for his work in Childhood Disabilities. He is also an Advisor on Cerebral Palsy to the Govt. of India.
Dr. Sharan has produced over 100 presentations and publications in the scientific literature and medical textbooks focusing on his special interest areas of Cerebral Palsy and other neuromusculoskeletal disorders. He is on the editorial panel of several reputed medical journals. Dr. Sharan is actively associated with American Academy of Cerebral Palsy & Developmental Medicine and the Childhood Disability Group of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics."
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