[Bone tissue harvesting after multiorgan procurements for preparation of preserved bone allografts]

Preserved bone allografts are widely used in orthopaedic and traumatology operations. Until now, bone tissue for the preparation of preserved allografts has been collected from cadaveric donors in forensic medicine departments. Increasing demand for preserved bone allografts and limited number of suitable donors led to a prolongation of the waiting time for this kind of allografts. In 1999 a group of orthopaedic surgeons from the Orthopaedics and Trauma Department of the Pomeranian University of Medical sciences started to retrieve bone tissue following vascularized organ procurements. The aim of this paper is to present the technical details and limitations of this enterprise. Between November 1999 and April 2001 bone tissue was received from 12 out of 20 multiorgan donors (60%).