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Technique · Combined internal and external

Lengthening and then nailing (LATN)

A staged combined technique in which an external fixator produces the lengthening first, and an intramedullary nail is inserted only after the planned length is reached.

listed providers
1
countries
1
provider types
1
care models
1

Methods here are lengthening techniques, kept separate from the devices used with them and from providers' own procedure names. Listings are provider-reported and publicly sourced, and informational only — LimbAtlas does not recommend a technique or device, and suitability depends on an individual clinical assessment. Confirm current details directly with a provider. Diagrams are simplified illustrations, not to scale and not of any specific device.

Classification

Category
Combined internal and external
Also called
LATN, Lengthening then nailing

How it works

Rozbruch and colleagues (2008) describe external fixation being used during the distraction phase. Once length is achieved, a reamed, locked intramedullary nail is inserted across the new bone and the frame is removed.

Typical components

  • An external fixator for the lengthening phase
  • An intramedullary nail inserted after lengthening

Devices providers name with it

Device types: Circular external fixator, Monolateral external fixator.

A device is not a technique: the same frame or nail can be part of different techniques. Listed devices are ones providers name on LimbAtlas, not a complete market list.

Points to discuss with a treating team

  • LATN involves a further operation to insert the nail after lengthening. Ask how the operations are scheduled and what happens between them.

Rehabilitation

AAOS describes regular follow-up visits and extensive rehabilitation, including physical therapy and home exercise, for both internal and external lengthening.

Where providers list this method

What listing providers offer

Provider types

  • Surgical clinic1 of 1

Care models

  • Surgery + rehabilitation1 of 1

Services stated in profiles

Rehabilitation

  • Available1

Accommodation

  • Not publicly stated1

Patients operated elsewhere

  • Not publicly stated1

Across 1 listed provider.

Related methods

Related by how the taxonomy groups methods, not by clinical similarity or suitability.

Providers currently listing this method

1 listed provider · shown alphabetically

  • Centre for Advanced Orthopaedics

    Singapore, Singapore

    Surgical clinic · Surgery + rehabilitation

    • Fully internal lengthening
    • External fixation
    • Lengthening and then nailing (LATN)
    Partially verified
Refine these providers in the directory

Related guides

  • Getting started

    What is limb lengthening?

    A plain-language introduction: the principle of gradual bone lengthening, the main ways it is carried out, why people consider it, and what the process involves over time.

    4 min readReviewed

  • Methods & devices

    Internal and external limb lengthening

    How the four techniques LimbAtlas records differ in where the lengthening hardware sits — inside the bone, outside the limb, or both — and what that structural difference does and does not tell you.

    4 min readReviewed

  • Methods & devices

    LON and LATN: two combined techniques

    How lengthening over nail (LON) and lengthening and then nailing (LATN) differ in the order in which a frame and a nail are used — explained from the studies that describe them, without comparing outcomes.

    4 min readReviewed

Sources

  1. Limb lengthening and then insertion of an intramedullary nail: a case-matched comparison (opens in a new tab)

    Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2008;466(12):2923-2932 · Scientific source · checked 3 Oct 2026

    Rozbruch SR, Kleinman D, Fragomen AT, Ilizarov S. Full text on PMC2628243. Abstract used for the definition of lengthening and then nailing only.

  2. Lower Limb Length Discrepancy (opens in a new tab)

    OrthoInfo, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons · Professional medical source · checked 3 Oct 2026

    Patient information focused on children. Used only for general descriptions of external and internal lengthening, follow-up and rehabilitation.