A new invention could allow people with lower leg injuries to throw away their crutches -- the traditional ones, that is. The first-ever hands-free crutch has hit the market.

The big question is why no one thought of them before.

The crutches stop painful underarm burn and allow users to keep their hands free for other tasks.

They were invented by Lance Matthews, an organic farmer who fell off a barn roof and shattered his ankle. Matthews was frustrated with his crutches, so he grabbed a hammer and some wood and nailed together the first version of the hands-free crutch.

It took just 20 minutes before Matthews had assembled what looked like a wooden leg with a place to rest his knee.

The invention is now being hailed as a leap forward in rehabilitation for lower leg injuries.

"What I don't understand is how anybody using crutches didn't think of something so simple," said Matthews.

Teacher Derek Wulff tried the crutch when he tore his tendons last year. "It allowed me to get back in the classroom, and kept my hands free to write on the chalkboard," Wulff said, demonstrating how the crutch allows users to hop along at a good pace.

The crutch also has humanitarian potential. It could help victims of landmines by providing a cheaper alternative to prosthesis.

Retired General Lewis MacKenzie is on the board of directors of Matthews' company. He commanded a unit during the Contra campaign in South America during the El Salvador civil war. "A lot of kids were having their legs blown off (by landmines), and kids grow, so they would grow out of their prosthesis. With the hands-free crutch, it's adjustable, so one device can last the rest of their life," MacKenzie said.

Lance Matthews never expected to be an inventor, but his accidental discovery could make a difference for people around the world.

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