Limb-lengthening: The 'radical' new plastic surgery craze (The Week)

[unable to retrieve full-text content]The Week - How does limb-lengthening work?Though medieval torture devices aren't involved, the procedure is arduous and prolonged. A doctor breaks the patient's shin bone and inserts a telescoping rod. Over time, the rod pulls the bone apart very gradually, roughly 1 millimeter a day. As the leg bone is stretched apart, new bone, nerves, arteries, and skin grow to fill in the gap. The whole process takes about three months, followed by several more months of demanding physical therapy. Only a few American doctors perform this procedure, which costs about $85,000 in the U.S., and significantly less abroad.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oped/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/theweek/20120227/cm_theweek/224875

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