IRISH WOMAN FIRST ADULT IN WORLD TO GET BIONIC SPINE
AN Irish woman has become the first adult in the world to receive a revolutionary REMOTE CONTROLLED 'ROBO SPINE', which uses magnets to combat the effects of scoliosis. Deirdre McDonnell, 34, from Drogheda, County Louth, can now stand tall for the first time after undergoing the pioneering MAGEC rod operation. The operation, also known as the magnetic expansion control system, involves the insertion of a magnetic rod that is screwed onto the spine and controlled externally in order to correct the curvature caused by scoliosis. Up until now, the £15K procedure has only been performed on children, as it was thought only to be effective for early onset scoliosis - typically diagnosed before the age of ten.
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WOMAN DISCOVERS PREGNANCY…AS HER BABY BEGINS CROWNING
A support worker was stunned to discover she was eight months pregnant after she was rushed to hospital with 'stomach cramps' .
MINI BONZAI MODELS - TREE-MENDOUS
These are the fascinating pictures of miniature table sculptures molded around bonsai trees that take up to a painstaking 18 months to create .
RARE BRONTE POEM FETCHES £92K AT AUCTION
A rare manuscript of one of Charlotte Bronte’s earliest poems went under the hammer today and fetched nearly £100,000 – double what it was expected to get .
PLAYFUL TIGERS GET UP TO MISCHIEF
SPLASHING in the water and fighting in-between rocks, these energetic tigers enjoy their fun-filled morning .
ADORABLE SHELTER DOGS STRIKE A ‘PAWS’ TO FIND FOREVER HOMES
A group of shelter dogs showcase their loveable personalities in a series of passport-style photographs - in the hope of finding their forever homes .
ABANDONED TAVERN AND FARM SHOP
STOOD side by side next to a busy road, these buildings were once bustling with life .
INCREDIBLE FOG CREATES GLOWING LANDSCAPES OVER TAIWAN
A blanket of fog is lit up by the colourful glowing lights of the city below .
BOSTON MARATHON PICTURES
T least three people have been killed and more than 100 injured, some seriously, in two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon .
BABY GIVEN THREE PER CENT CHANCE OF LIFE COMES HOME FOR FIRST TIME
A baby who was given just a three per cent chance of survival at birth has beaten the odds to come home - even though docs told his parents to abort him 12 times .
KINGFISHERS DIVE FOR THEIR DINNER
THESE kingfishers prove no rod is needed as they go fishing for their dinner .
ADORABLE STOAT HUNTS IN THE SNOW
DASHING through the snow, this little stoat is on the lookout for a Christmas feast .
CHEEKY WHITE TIGER CUB
WITH HIS PAW covering his mouth, this cheeky cub looks amused by something .