Patient guide

How to Choose an Orthopaedic Surgeon in Chennai

Searching for the "best orthopaedic surgeon in Chennai" produces a page of advertisements and very little useful information. There is no single best surgeon — there is a surgeon who is right for your specific problem. This guide sets out how to identify them.

Written by Dr. Pankaj Hingarh, MBBS, MS (Orthopaedics) — consultant orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon, T. Nagar, Chennai.

This guide is written to help you evaluate any orthopaedic surgeon properly, including us. If the criteria below lead you elsewhere, that is a good outcome — the wrong operation from the wrong surgeon is far more expensive than a second opinion.

Six checks

What actually matters

Verify the registration, not the billboard

Every practising doctor in Tamil Nadu holds a registration number with the Tamil Nadu Medical Council, and it can be checked on the Council register. Qualifications that matter for orthopaedics are MBBS followed by MS (Orthopaedics) or DNB (Orthopaedics). A fellowship indicates further subspecialty training in a defined area.

Match the subspecialty to your problem

Orthopaedics has diverged into subspecialties. A surgeon who does mainly spine work is not the right choice for a complex knee replacement, and an arthroplasty specialist is not who you want for a hand injury. Ask directly how many of your specific procedure they perform, and how often.

Judge them by how readily they say no

This is the most revealing question you can ask: "What happens if I do not have this surgery?" A surgeon who can describe your non-surgical options in detail, and who is willing to tell you that you do not need an operation yet, is demonstrating judgement. Over-treatment is a real problem in Indian orthopaedics.

Ask who will actually operate

In some large hospitals the surgeon you consult is not the one who performs your operation or reviews you afterwards. Ask plainly: will you perform the surgery yourself, and will you personally see me at follow-up? The answer should be unambiguous.

Test whether you actually understood

After the consultation, try explaining your diagnosis to a family member. If you cannot, the explanation was inadequate — and a patient who does not understand their condition rarely completes the rehabilitation that determines the outcome.

Get the details in writing

Ask for a written estimate showing what is included and excluded, and specifically whether post-discharge physiotherapy, follow-up X-rays and walking aids are covered. Ask the same of your insurer. Verbal assurances have a habit of changing.

Eight questions to take with you

Print this, or keep it open on your phone during the consultation.

1 What exactly is the diagnosis, and what does my X-ray show?
2 What are my non-surgical options, and have they genuinely been exhausted?
3 What happens if I wait six months?
4 How many of these procedures do you perform in a year?
5 Will you personally perform the surgery and see me at follow-up?
6 What are the realistic risks and complications in my case?
7 What does recovery involve week by week, and what will I not be able to do?
8 What is included in the package, and what is excluded?

Red flags

Any one of these justifies getting a second opinion.

Surgery recommended at the first visit without any trial of non-surgical treatment
An MRI ordered before you have been physically examined
Reluctance to explain what happens if you wait or decline
Pressure to decide immediately, or a discount that expires
No clear answer about who will perform the operation
Guaranteed outcomes — no honest surgeon promises a result

A note on rankings and "top surgeon" lists

Most "top 10 orthopaedic surgeons in Chennai" listings are paid placements or directory pages monetised through advertising. They are marketing, not assessment, and no independent body ranks individual surgeons in India.

The Indian Medical Council regulations, which govern every registered practitioner in the country, specifically restrict doctors from soliciting patients or advertising superiority over colleagues. A clinic describing itself as "the best" is, at minimum, being careless about those rules — which tells you something in itself.

What you can verify is concrete: the qualification, the Council registration, the subspecialty, the volume of your specific procedure, who performs the operation, and whether the surgeon explains your options honestly enough that you understand them. Those things are checkable. A ranking is not.

Questions

Choosing your surgeon

Happy to answer any of these about our own practice — call +91 99622 45671.

How do I check if an orthopaedic surgeon in Chennai is properly qualified?

Look for MBBS followed by MS (Orthopaedics) or DNB (Orthopaedics), and confirm their registration with the Tamil Nadu Medical Council, whose register is publicly searchable. A fellowship — for example in arthroplasty or sports medicine — indicates additional subspecialty training beyond the primary qualification.

Should I choose a surgeon based on years of experience alone?

Experience matters, but volume in your specific procedure matters more than total years in practice. A surgeon with eight years who performs joint replacements weekly is generally a better choice for a knee replacement than one with twenty-five years who performs them occasionally. Ask about the specific procedure, not the career.

Is a second opinion worth getting before orthopaedic surgery?

For any elective procedure, yes. Joint replacement and ligament reconstruction are not emergencies, and a few weeks spent getting a second view costs you little. Bring all imaging and reports. A confident surgeon will not be offended — most encourage it.

How much do Google reviews tell you about a surgeon?

They are useful for communication, waiting times and staff conduct — the things patients can genuinely assess. They tell you very little about surgical technique or complication rates, which patients are not positioned to judge. Read them for the pattern rather than for individual outcomes.

Is a bigger hospital always better for orthopaedic surgery?

Not necessarily. Large hospitals offer more infrastructure and are the right choice for complex, high-risk patients or those needing intensive care backup. Smaller consultant-led practices typically offer more continuity, since the surgeon you meet is the one who operates and follows you up. The right answer depends on your case.

Appointments

Come and put these questions to us

Bring your X-rays and your list. A consultation does not commit you to anything, and being told you do not need surgery is a perfectly normal outcome here.

+91 99622 45671 Request an appointment

Monday – Saturday

10:00 AM – 12:30 PM

6:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Sunday — Closed (emergency calls attended)

7B, 4B, Thirumurthy Street Parthasarathi Puram, T. Nagar
Chennai 600017