Patient Information

Whilst the human body is amazingly resilient, it can sometimes be pushed beyond its limits. You may need a tissue implant, known as an allograft, to help repair damage to your body. A surgeon’s other option is called an autograft, which takes tissue from one part of your body for transplantation to another part. This may not be an option if you have already undergone a previous surgery. If your surgeon has told you that you need a tissue implant to repair damage to your body, we understand that you will have questions relating to allograft tissue. We hope to help answer some of the most common questions surrounding allograft in this information leaflet, including its safety and sterilisation. It is important to discuss any questions or concerns with your surgeon before your procedure.

An allograft is tissue taken from one person for transplantation into another. This can include anything from bone and tendons, to skin and organs.

Tissue donation is a gift given to enhance the quality of life for others. It is strictly voluntary; the donor must have consented before death or the donor’s family must consent to the donation after death. After consent is obtained, potential donors are thoroughly screened for risk factors and medical conditions that would rule out donation.

Allografts are a natural alternative to synthetic or metal implants. However, unlike metal implants, allograft tissue incorporates into your body. Using an allograft tissue implant eliminates the need for a second surgery site. By eliminating this second surgery site, allografts help avoid additional pain, infection risk, longer rehabilitation and possibly a longer hospital stay.

After consent for donation is obtained, potential donors are screened for risk factors associated with infectious diseases and medical conditions that would rule out donation. Every donor is evaluated using medical and social history assessment, medical records, blood tests, culture results, physical examinations and autopsy reports (when performed).

Aseptic processing refers to tissue recovered and packaged using a technique that minimises the potential for introducing contamination into the tissue. Whilst Hospital Innovations’ tissue banks use the gold standard filtration techniques and strict donor approval processes, aseptically processed allograft tissue should not be considered sterile. An Aseptic allograft offers a Sterility Assurance Level of 10-3, with an infection risk of one in a thousand.

Hospital Innovations works in partnership with five of the world’s leading tissue banks. Our allograft tissue is prepared using each suppliers’ proprietary processes that ensure a Sterility Assurance Level (SAL) of 10-6. A Sterility Assurance Level of 10-6 indicates an infection risk of one in a million.

Since the launch of Hospital Innovations Ltd in 2008, we are proud to have worked with leading tissue banks who have a combined total of over 30 million biologic implants processed with zero confirmed incident of implant associated infection.