Limb lengthening surgery originally serves the purpose of treating congenital deformities, shortened limbs due to acquired causes, bone defects and other diseases. Photo: CCTV News

A Chinese woman who reportedly underwent limb lengthening surgery in Turkey has suffered severe complications, drawing significant public attention to the procedure recently.

Limb lengthening surgery, commonly known as "breaking bones to boost height" in China, originally serves the purpose of treating congenital deformities, shortened limbs due to acquired causes, bone defects and other diseases, and to help patients realize the equal length of both lower limbs. This procedure has been explicitly banned for cosmetic use in China, reported CCTV.

An investigation by CCTV News on Sunday revealed how "medical scammers", which refer to individuals who profit by deceiving patients into accepting treatments or medications, encourage healthy individuals to undergo limb lengthening surgery using fake medical records. The surgery posed significant risks and complications that severely affect the patients' physical and mental well-being as well as their daily lives.

During the investigation, CCTV reporter contacted a "medical scammer" named Adi, who said that the surgery is typically misrepresented as a deformity correction procedure. Patients are admitted for surgery using fraudulent medical records and pay the scammer in cash, rather than the doctor directly. According to Adi, he had facilitated dozens of patients undergoing the procedure.

Adi referred the reporter to a doctor surnamed Meng, whose surgery charge was 120,000 yuan ($16,000). Meng was introduced as the hospital's director and an associate chief orthopedic physician with over 30 years of experience in orthopedic surgery.

During the consultation, Meng admitted that the surgery carries high risks but claimed that his techniques were "mature" and that the results, especially in terms of post-surgery functional recovery, were relatively reliable.

However, expert explained to CCTV that the procedure, which involves applying gradual stress to stimulate bone, blood vessel, and muscle regeneration, is highly complex and fraught with individual uncertainties. It is one of the most problematic surgeries with a high rate of complications.

Many individuals seeking to increase their height are unaware of the risks, and blindly undergoing the surgery can result in lifelong physical consequences, reported CCTV.

Several patients interviewed by CCTV described severe post-surgery complications and a significant decline in their quality of life due to a lack of adequate follow-up medical care. 

A patient, who underwent surgery, suffered joint problems and uneven leg lengths, rendering him unable to walk normally with no viable medical remedy. 

CCTV also reported that in recent years, some people have traveled abroad for surgery. Fang is one of them. In 2020, Fang was introduced by a "medical scammer" and learned that many people traveled to Turkey to undergo limb lengthening surgery. At the beginning of 2021, Fang underwent the surgery and her tibia was lengthened by about 6 centimeters. But in July 2021, she suddenly developed a serious infection in her right leg, according to CCTV report.

She was diagnosed with chronic osteomyelitis, valgus deformity of the right knee, and clubfoot. The "medical scammer" informed her that the doctor had terminated their contract and the replacement doctor would be unavailable temporarily. The intermediary organization denied any responsibility.

Expert told CCTV that limb lengthening surgery is a complex process that requires more than a year or even two for proper recovery, with surgery only being one part of the process. The entire procedure relies heavily on the mutual trust and cooperation between doctor and patient. 

Illegal surgeries carried out in secrecy are unable to ensure proper management throughout the process, significantly increasing the risk of complications, which can even result in permanent functional disabilities, said the expert, reported CCTV News.

According to CCTV, before 2006, limb lengthening surgery was commonly performed in China for both deformity correction and cosmetic height increase. At that time, some medical institutions, disregarding their capabilities and resources, advertised aggressively and attracted many patients, leading to numerous failed surgeries that raised widespread public concern.

In 2006, the Ministry of Health of China issued a notice mandating that limb lengthening surgery be restricted to qualified medical institutions under stringent clinical guidelines. Allowable cases included congenital deformities, trauma, tumors, infections, or limb length discrepancies resulting from disease. The surgery was explicitly banned for cosmetic purposes.