Miss Sarah McMahon

Professional statement

Miss Sarah McMahon is an experienced consultant in trauma and orthopaedic surgery, specialised in limb reconstruction. Her practice at Great Ormond Street Hospital and at The Portland Hospital is dedicated to surgery in children and young people, between the ages of 0-18. Occasionally, she sees pregnant women who wish to discuss foetal limb anomalies discovered on antenatal scan.

She read medicine at UCL, graduating with a distinction in anatomy and developmental biology in addition to her medical degree. She completed her medical and surgical training rotations in Edinburgh and London, focussing in on the diagnosis and treatment of injuries, difficulties, and deformities affecting the musculooskeletal system in adults and children. Her subspecialty fellowships in paediatric orthopaedics and limb reconstruction were at Great Ormond Street Hospital, The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, and Kings College Hospital.

She attained the Fellowhip of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS) in Trauma and Orthopaedics in 2010, and is a member of the British Limb Reconstruction Society. She began her Consultant career at the Royal Free Hospital, before joining the staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital. She is a Surgical Trainer for registrars, developing the next generation of experts in her field. She treats all non-spinal conditions in children, with the exception of soft tissue knee (arthroscopic or keyhole procedures). This includes flat feet, bow legs, knock knees, fractures, painful joints, limping, leg length differences and hip disorders in babies and older children (DDH, Perthes, neuromuscular).

She takes a holistic approach to clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment, and views individual problems in the context of the alignment and function of the whole limb, and the whole life of each child. She has as special interest in the Ilizarov technique for limb lengthening and correction of bone deformities using external frames, often deployed in the treatment of children with rare conditions affecting their bones and children who have developed a bone problem after suffering a serious infection or accident. At The Portland Hospital she works with a team of surgeons and Miss Crichton, their superb practice manager, who makes everything run smoothly from the perspective of the patient and their family.