BehindTheMedspeak: World's oldest prosthetic toe

Below, a Facebook post by Ken Rutkowski.

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Fake Toes Found in Ancient Egyptian Tombs Could Be The World's Oldest Prostheses

There is a documented history of ancient Egyptians creating fake body parts to augment bodies headed for burial, but a new study suggests that two artificial toes [one is pictured above] recovered from tombs there may in fact be the oldest known prosthetic body parts.

Researchers at the University of Manchester made replicas of the two items — both right big toes — and then had volunteers missing those toes wear them.

The fake toes proved not only comfortable to wear, but also vastly improve the walking ability of the volunteers while wearing traditional Egyptian sandals, suggesting these toes had more than an aesthetic funerary purpose."

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[via The Huffington Post and Richard Kashdan]