Growing pains

To kick-start regrowth, a lengthening device is implanted into a long bone and the bone gently cracked in half, before being reset a distance apart to begin the lengthening process.

NATURAL height is widely accepted to be unchangeable. Look a little deeper, however, and one may unearth the world of stature adjustment that has been growing and developing for more than half a century.

Surgeons who perform stature or limb-length adjustment procedures are scattered sparsely throughout the world, many with centres that offer long-term residential aftercare quarters for patients to stay in during their recovery term.

While the cosmetic aspect of the surgery has gained popularity in the past decade, the usefulness of bone lengthening and reformation has not waned in the field of reconstructive limb treatment.

People suffering from length discrepancy between limbs due to congenital birth defects, scoliosis or atrophied muscles can also benefit from stature adjustment surgery.

A person’s final stature and limb length are naturally unalterable after a certain period due to the fusing of their growth plates.

These growth plates are located at either end of each of their bones and continue regenerating and lengthening bone until late teenagehood or early adulthood, when these growth plates ossify to halt bone growth.

However, some arm-lengthening surgeries have been performed on children with bone deformities whose growth plates were still active.

To kick-start regrowth, a lengthening device is implanted into a long bone and the bone gently cracked in half, before being reset a distance apart to begin the lengthening process.

New growth of bone forms between the two halves and the whole bone eventually consolidates into a homologous structure.

This basic principle is also used in stature adjustment to treat complications resulting from leg length discrepancy where the patient’s spine and joints are subject to abnormal pressure from uneven gait.

For cosmetic procedures, interested patients are often required to answer a screening questionnaire before they are granted a consultation with the surgeon.

The screening helps surgeons ensure potential patients are serious about undergoing the procedure and are aware of risks associated with the procedure and its permanence.

T p t contact with surgeon and consultation itself could take months to complete, depending heavily on whether the surgeon deems an applicant suitable.

Mechanics of limb lengthening

Limb lengthening originated with a bone treatment device by Russian orthopaedic surgeon Gavriil Ilizarov.

The device, called the Ilizarov apparatus, was monumental in the treatment and healing process of broken bones and is still used today.

Initially used to correct congenital limb abnormalities and

c p y f poliomyelitis, it was eventually discovered that the healing potential of broken bone across a tiny distance of separation could be used for limb lengthening and, consequently, stature lengthening.

Today, the Ilizarov apparatus is used for both medical and cosmetic limb-lengthening procedures.

Different surgeons offer different methods of limb lengthening. The ever-popular Ilizarov apparatus is one and others are newer, fully internal implanted lengthening devices that come in the form of intramedullary nails such as Precice, Fitbone or Albizzia.

The rods of these devices are inserted into the cavity of a long bone and the nails are anchored to either end of the bone to slowly p o pa

To preserve integrity in a patient’s overall skeletal structure, only long bones are suitable to be lengthened.

Bones most commonly operated on for cosmetic procedures are the femur and tibia in the leg as well as the humerus in the arm, but medical procedures are performed on a wider range of bones depending on the affected area.

Patients seeking limblengthening surgery are advised to conduct extensive research and gain expert medical opinion to make the most informed decision they can before undergoing this irreversible procedure.

THE pace of bone regulation and metabolism differs among individuals and slows down with age. Osteoporosis occurs when the creation of new bones cannot keep up with the breaking down of old bones.

Osteoporosis affects men and women of all races and is more commonly seen in postmenopausal women. The disease leads to an increased risk of broken bones with various risk factors such as age, gender, family history and dietary factors coming into play.

For the longest time, calcium was thought to be the answer to bone health concerns. However, a study published by The BMJ found that women supplemented with calcium to prevent osteoporosis are at higher risk of suffering from atherosclerosis, heart attack and stroke.

How can something good be bad for us in another way? What could be the missing link in calcium supplementation?

Vitamin K is a group of fat-soluble vitamins. Vitamin K1 is a blood-clotting factor easily found in green leafy vegetables while vitamin K2 plays the crucial role of calcium regulation. Much like biological glue, vitamin K2 helps plug calcium into our bone matrix.

Studies have shown that vitamin K2 helps improve bone strength and density. At the same time, it prevents heart diseases by effectively depositing calcium into where it belongs – the bones and teeth.

Without vitamin K2, calcium that we consume floats freely in the bloodstream and deposits in the arteries.

This makes the arteries progressively stiff and narrow (calcification), impeding healthy blood flow to and from the heart. Over time, poor blood flow leads to a burdened heart and the increased risk of heart diseases.

Calcium, vitamin D and vitamin K2 have a synergistic effect, which cannot be achieved when one is missing.

Dietary calcium is linked to many benefits, especially bone health. Vitamin D3, a natural form of vitamin D, helps your body absorb calcium but vitamin K2 completes the puzzle by directing that calcium to your skeleton.

Without vitamin K2, the calcium that vitamin D3 so effectively lets in might work against you, building up in your coronary arteries rather than your bones.

Thus, calcium taken together with vitamin D3 and K2 may help circumvent the risks of heart diseases.

Patients receiving oral anticoagulant treatment should consult their medical doctor before taking vitamin K2 supplements.

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