A cosmetic surgeon in Spain has developed a new way of adding up to two inches to a person's height by inserting a silicone head implant, leading British newspaper the Daily Mail reported.

According to Dr Luis de la Cruz of the Clinica La Luz hospital in Madrid, the operation takes 90 minutes during which an incision is made in one side of the head and then the implant is squeezed in between the skull and the scalp.

The cost of the operation is 4,000 pounds and it is usually performed by applying a local anaesthetic. Patients are released from the hospital the subsequent day.

Dr de la Cruz, who has already carried out the operation on 17 patients, said: "It is a relatively simple procedure that can have a wonderfully positive effect on the patient's life. Like most good ideas it came to me in a flash.

"I was approached by a young woman who always dreamt of becoming an air stewardess. She was rejected for being half an inch too small and asked if there was any technique to add to her height.

"At the time the only way was through lengthening the leg bones, which is an extreme and traumatic option. It got me thinking.