At the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso orthopedist Dr. Amr Abdelgawad, with help from Noe Hernandez of Carnegie Mellon University, has invented a bone lengthening implant which can be used to lengthen the bones of young children. Conventional bone lengthening Ilizarov apparatuses are external structures attached to a bisected bone by large pins inserted through the skin and tissue. The Ilizarov device slowly separates the bisected bone, allowing for new bone growth. Though this is the current standard concerning bone lengthening, it cannot be used on young children due to the potential danger to their growth plates, the area in the bone that contains growing tissue.
