Scientists have discovered evidence of the earliest known use of surgery – a successful amputation that occurred at least 31,000 years ago.⁠ ⁠ Archeologists in the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo discovered the remains of a person who died around the age of 19 or 20 years old. This person had the lower third of their left leg completely amputated when they were a child. The amputation site showed healing without any signs of infection.⁠ ⁠ "Demonstrating successful amputation performed on a child 31,000 years ago also implies a likely understanding of the need for antiseptic and antimicrobial management key to modern medical advances, which only occurred within the past two centuries of modern medicine," study lead author Tim Maloney, an archaeologist at Griffith University in Australia, tells Inverse. ⁠ ⁠ Head to the link in bio to learn more: @inverse⁠ ⁠ 📸 credit: T. Maloney et al., Nature