How Much Taller Can I Get With Limb Lengthening?

To get right to the point, the most you can safely achieve with limb lengthening is, theoretically, about 6 inches. However, as we get closer to that maximum lengthening, the risk of complications and poor outcomes increases dramatically. To understand how tall you can get, we must discuss the implant used to facilitate the extension. Modern limb lengthening relies on what is known as an intramedullary nail. This is a metal device that fits inside the bone and provides stability during the distraction or lengthening process. Each of these rods has a maximum lengthening capability of approximately 3 inches. We can, in theory, achieve 3 inches in the femur or thigh bone above the knee and the tibia below the knee. As mentioned above, getting too close to this maximum length is problematic, especially with the lower bone or tibia. As such, we tend to max out the tibial distraction to approximately 2-2.5 inches, while we can get closer to 3 inches with the femur.

Why Can’t I Get Even Taller?

There are a few reasons we suggest limiting the length we add to the limbs.

First, while the bone can fill itself in as we pull it apart, the muscles and tendons in the area are not quite as adaptable. Muscles and tendons stretch and can become stiff, causing pain, at least temporarily. However, this change in the length of musculature can also pull on joints, creating longer-term problems. The same is true for nerves, and as we lengthen the limb, there is a greater risk of peripheral nerve injury, potentially resulting in weakness or numbness.

Second, the devices currently available to us for limb-lengthening have certain limits. We can’t lengthen past six inches.

Of course, along with sheer height increases, we also want to ensure proportionality. This means we do not want the legs to look awkward after the procedure and lengthening. Dr. Basmajian will work with each of our patients to understand what height increase strikes a balance between a patient’s desire to be taller and a proportional aesthetic outcome.

How Many Operations Do I Need?

Surgery for increasing a patient’s height has made significant technological advances over the past decade. While these were once exotic procedures, today, the lengthening is straightforward, with excellent data to support its safety and efficacy. This is especially true for an experienced surgeon like Dr. Basmajian. He not only performs these procedures cosmetically but sees dozens of patients every year in the hospital setting that require him to correct trauma-related limb deformities and injuries. Today, both lengthening implants can be placed (in the femur and the tibia) during the same procedure. Patients can learn more about the pros and cons of a single surgical and anesthesia event versus multiple surgeries during the consultation with Dr. Basmajian.

It is also worth noting that Dr. Basmajian often helps patients avoid a follow-up surgery to remove the intramedullary nail as we can safely leave the implant within the bone.

Having performed hundreds of these procedures and dozens of revisions to unsuccessful procedures performed overseas, Dr. Basmajian uses his vast experience to personalize a treatment plan for each patient.