Science has done many truly wonderful things in the past, but little measures up to the sight of Oscar, the British cat with bionic legs. Yes, that’s right: the cat with bionic legs. Oscar lost his back legs in a combine harvester accident, but the skills of Dr Noel Fitzpatrick meant that he was able to jump about at random like every other four-legged feline in just four months. The British Guardian newspaper has the explanation of what happened:
In a three-hour procedure, the veterinary surgical team inserted the pegs by drilling into one of Oscar’s ankle bones in each of his back legs. The implants, which are attached to the bone at the amputation site, were coated with hydroxyapatite to encourages bone cells to grow onto the metal.The skin then grows over a special “umbrella” at the end of the peg to form a seal against bacteria and potentially fatal infections. The peg protrudes through the bone and skin, allowing the custom-built artificial paws to then be securely attached.
No word yet as to whether the procedure cost six million dollars.
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