Gurgaon, Aug 6 (IANS) Indian doctors have successfully operated upon a American national and replaced four discs from his backbone at one go, a rare feat that doctors here claim to be the 'first in Asia'.

A team of doctors led by orthopaedic and spinal surgeon Harshavardhan Hegde replaced four discs - two in the neck and two in lower back - in a marathon operation lasting over eight hours.

The patient, Kim Busk, 52, a construction contractor in the US, underwent surgery July 31 at the Artemis Health Institute, a super specialty hospital in suburban Gurgaon.

'As far as medical literature goes, we have not witnessed such a case, at least in Asia. This was a very difficult and tricky surgery. To replace two discs each at the neck and lower back at one sitting is unique,' Hegde told IANS.

'Two-level disc replacement surgery is a rarely conducted procedure in India due to the complications involved as it is requires a lot of precision. Four-level disc replacement surgery is a big milestone for the Indian spinal and orthopaedics fraternity as it is the first surgery of its kind to be performed in Asia.