Ancient surgery?: Scientists excavating the remains at the cave in East Kalimantan and the skeleton with its missing foot (right). — AFP/AP
THE 31,000-year-old skeleton of a young adult found in a cave in Indonesia that is missing its left foot and part of its left leg reveal the oldest known evidence of an amputation, according to a new study.
Scientists say the amputation was performed when the person was a child – and that the “patient” went on to live for years as an amputee. The prehistoric surgery could show that humans were making medical advances much earlier than previously thought, according to the study published on Wednesday in the journal Nature.
