Tygerberg Hospital in the Western Cape, in partnership with Stellenbosch University, has successfully completed South Africa’s first fully internal bone transport and limb-lengthening reconstruction.
The breakthrough procedure was performed on a 64-year-old patient who had endured chronic pain and a significant leg-length discrepancy since a gunshot injury in 2018. The surgical team reconstructed the bone defect and corrected the length difference, restoring mobility and comfort.
Professor Nando Ferreira, Head of Stellenbosch University’s Clinical Unit for Tumour, Sepsis and Reconstruction, says the achievement represents a major step forward for local reconstructive surgery.
“This approach significantly improves patient comfort, reduces complications, and delivers superior long-term functional outcomes,” he explains. “It also showcases the advanced reconstructive expertise we have developed in the South African public sector. Over many years, Tygerberg Hospital and Stellenbosch University have built a limb reconstruction unit capable of offering procedures performed by only a handful of centres globally.”