Reggie Hamdy, MD

Distraction osteogenesis is a surgical technique used to replace bone loss. The technique is used in children who have one leg shorter than the other due to a variety of causes. When leg length difference is three centimetres or more, the best option has been to lengthen the shorter limb by cutting the bone and gradually lengthening it by means of an external frame attached to the bone. A disadvantage of this technique is the very long duration the fixator has to be kept on (1– 2 months for every centimetre lengthened), leading to medical, social, psychological and financial problems for both patient and family. My research is focused on shortening period the fixator has to be kept on, so that many of these problems can be avoided. We propose to directly stimulate new bone formation at the lengthened site. With recent advances in science, certain substances called growth factors may be able to stimulate and accelerate the formation of new bone. We will inject growth factors at the lengthened site and determine if new bone can be formed more quickly. If successful, many of the problems associated with long duration of fixator attachment will be avoided.Distraction Osteogenesis, Growth factors, Bone Morphogenetic Proteins, Molecular signalling bone, Knockout mice