What is lengthening surgery?

Lengthening surgery is a type of orthopaedic surgery designed to increase the length of the leg. This procedure involves surgically cutting the bone that needs to be lengthened and using an external or internal lengthening system to widen the space between the ends of the bone.

Every day, a small amount of new bone is produced in the space between the lengthened bone ends. In fact, bone lengthening is a process that utilises the body’s ability to renew itself. In addition to the body’s ability to form new bone, muscles, ligaments, blood vessels and nerves, as well as the surrounding supporting soft tissues, all contribute to this process. With all of these processes in place, there is no need to remove bones or other tissues from other parts of the body.