Cosmetic limb surgery trend thrives in Las Vegas

HENDERSON, Nev. - Las Vegas is becoming the destination for cosmetic limb surgery, thanks to the Limbplastx Institute in nearby Henderson. 

The surgery consists of lengthening limbs for people who want to appear taller and boost their confidence. The institute said they even have a new device to make recovery faster. 

"People have called me short and ‘I’m like 5′9″ isn’t short,’"an unidentified father told KVVU who allowed a news crew to watch his procedure at Sunrise Hospital.  He paid around $80,000 for the procedure. 

"I guess it dates back to when I was 14-15 going through puberty wanting to be taller than the rest of my siblings... Even though I am taller than most of my family, it doesn’t compare to the real world,"  he said. 

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Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Kevin Debiparshad, known to his patients as Dr. D., performs some of the surgery.

"Vegas is often first in many realms like entertainment, the culinary industry, now the sporting industry, the Super Bowl and F1, we tend not to be the first in the medical or education," Dr. D. told the news outlet. 

"For deformity, congenital defect, traumatic injuries, sometimes if someone has cancer you can resect part of the bone out and then re-grow the bone," he added. 

The unidentified patient said he should be around six feet tall thanks to the new device with stronger rods. 

"Throughout my life people who are taller always had the advantages," another patient Hugo Ramirez, said. He went from 5′9″ to 6′1″ last year and was confined to bed for a three-month recovery.

"I am still getting the rush off 6′1″. I can only imagine what the rush is going to be on 6′3″, 6′4″," he added. 

This story was reported from Los Angeles.