An Australian defence force surgeon has helped a Vietnamese burns victim to regain full use of his arm.

An Australian navy medical officer named Ravi Mahajani performed the life changing surgery in a Nha Trang hospital earlier last week.

The experienced plastic and reconstructive surgeon was in Vietnam for an annual multinational humanitarian assistance mission where he performed several surgeries as part of the initiative.

Previously to the surgery, Commander Mahajani’s patient could not lift his right arm above shoulder height due to severe electrical burns.

The humanitarian assistance program started 12 years ago in a response to the 2004 Aceh tsunami.