Oscar (bionic cat)

For other cats named Oscar, see Oscar (cat).

Oscar is a cat, owned by Kate Allan and Mike Nolan, who lives on the Channel Island of Jersey. In 2009 Oscar had both hind paws severed by a combine harvester. Since then he has undergone a pioneering operation to add prosthetic feet. The treatment has since been considered for use with humans.

Accident

In October 2009, at the age of two and a half years, Oscar had both the paws of his hind legs severed by a combine harvester while in a maize field near his home in Jersey.^[1][2] The legs were cut between the ankle and the foot.^[3] Oscar was later found by a passing cyclist^[1] who then brought Oscar to his owners' home. Mike Nolan, an IT manager in a bank,^[4] was at home when the woman brought Oscar; he said that at this point Oscar was covered in blood, and he was convinced the cat would have to be put down.^[1] He and Oscar's other owner, Kate Allan, took him to their local veterinarian^[2] Peter Haworth.^[1]

Treatment

Initial treatment

Peter Haworth, a vet at the New Era Veterinary Hospital, dressed Oscar's wounds and administered cat painkillers making him comfortable within minutes.^[1][5] Haworth then referred Allan and Nolan to the Surrey-based neuro-orthopaedic surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick.^[1][3] There was a lot of communication between the Irish surgeon and the Jersey owners. After looking at x-rays and pictures Fitzpatrick decided Oscar would be an ideal patient partly due to his young age.^[1] Oscar was then flown to the United Kingdom mainland by air cargo although he had to stay in his box for eight hours during the journey.^[1]

New feet

Oscar's owners did a lot of "soul-searching" before deciding to go ahead with the operation.^[6] Kate Allan later said that the cause for her uncertainty was that the kind of operation planned had never been done before.^[1] Although the operation carried out by Noel Fitzpatrick was a world first, it mimics a natural process, being similar to the way deer grow antler bones, in the manner that the implants grow through the skin.^[1][6] The implants were both custom-made to fit into holes drilled into Oscar's ankle bones.^[5][7] They are known as intraosseous transcutaneous amputation prosthetics (ITAPs) and were developed by the head of University College London's Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Gordon Blunn and colleagues.^[8] They have a honeycomb structure which enables skin to bond with the implant to prevent infection.^[9] The implants are placed into the drilled holes which then allow for a "sock" to be fitted over them.^[8]

The ITAP technology is currently being tested on humans and a prosthetic has been made for a woman injured in the July 2005 London bombings.^[8] Fitzpatrick has said he would welcome a collaborative approach with other surgeons working on human amputations.^[9]

The Bionic Vet

The Bionic Vet is a BBC documentary following the work of Fitzpatrick which aired on BBC1 on 30 June 2010.^[1][9] The programme showed Oscar walking with prototype feet made for him by engineers at Salford University. Footage not shown on the programme of Oscar with a later set of better-designed feet was uploaded on to YouTube on 18 June 2010.^[10] An update video with the vet involved showed Oscar's new feet and explained how they are designed to snap at a break point on the 'blade' rather than within the foot if he gets into difficulty.^[11]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} Morrison, Ryan (25 June 2010). "A cat from Jersey has shot to fame as the 'bionic cat'". BBC Online (BBC Jersey). http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/jersey/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8762000/8762217.stm. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Cheng, Maria. "Bionic British cat gets faux paws". Google Search (The Associated Press). http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iXq2jSNiRynLRPRPoWCDa5w3DPhAD9GIFGMO0. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "Laois surgeon helps amputee cat". The Irish Times. June 25, 2010. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0625/breaking32.html?via=mr. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
4. ^ Thomas, Liz (June 25, 2010). "Oscar the bionic cat after pioneering surgery gave him TWO false back legs". Mail Online (London: Daily Mail). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1289281/Oscar-bionic-cat-pioneering-surgery-gave-TWO-false-legs.html. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Gallego, Sonia. "Oscar the Cat Gets Two Prosthetic Legs". ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/OnCall/cat-prosthetic-legs/story?id=11013333&page=1. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Jones, Sam (25 June, 2010). "Paws for thought: pioneering surgery puts cat back on his feet". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/25/oscar-cat-artifical-paws-pioneering-surgery. Retrieved 26 June 2010. 
7. ^ "Oscar the 'Bionic Cat' (including an interview with Fitzpatrick)". YouTube. 30 June 2010. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Won5dmGUVkY&feature=related. Retrieved 2 September 2010. 
8. ^ ^{a b c} "Bionic feet for amputee cat". BBC Online. 25 June, 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/science_and_environment/10404251.stm. Retrieved 27 June 2010. 
9. ^ ^{a b c} "Oscar becomes world's first bionic cat after farm accident". Herald Sun. June 26, 2010. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/oscar-becomes-worlds-first-bionic-cat-after-farm-accident/story-e6frf7lf-1225884599089. Retrieved 27 June 2010. 
10. ^ "Oscar the bionic cat". YouTube. 18 June 2010. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmDqVN7vr8E. Retrieved 2 July 2010. 
11. ^ http://www.fitzpatrickreferrals.co.uk/news/oscar-update-video-bionic-cat-gets-new-feet

External links

• Information from Noel Fitzpatrick's veterinary practice about the operation
• Irish Times article with photo of Oscar with his new feet (not the prototypes seen in the BBC programme)
• Purr 'n' Fur: Oscar, the 'Bionic' Cat from Jersey