Distraction osteogenesis is a way to make a longer bone out of a shorter one.

After a bone is cut during surgery, a device called a distractor pulls the 2 pieces of bone apart slowly. The slow stretching apart of bone is not painful. Children say it hurts less than braces they wear to straighten teeth.

New bone grows (osteogenesis) to fill the gap. This happens at home after your child leaves the hospital. The process takes a couple of months.

Distraction osteogenesis allows for bigger corrections in bone position than is possible in a single traditional surgery. This improves the results and may reduce the amount of surgery a child needs over their lifetime.