Govt framing norms for human bone processing, storage; plans national registry

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) is preparing guidelines on processing and storage of human bones and aims to create a database of donors, recipients and hospitals with these facilities, as demand for natural bones for reconstructive procedures rises in the country. Processed human bones, or those that have been sterilized to reduce the risk of infection, are required to perform bone fixation surgery in patients who may be suffering from bone cancer, or had a trauma, or other medical conditions that have destroyed their bones.

Currently, metal plates or rods are mostly used to fix bone fractures, raising the risk of infection and other complications. Also read | For small drugmakers playing fast and loose with quality, trouble is on way “Like human organs, we are now getting demands for processed human bones from orthopaedic surgeons. These are used in cases when a patient’s bone gets destroyed due to trauma or disease.

The artificial bones are more vulnerable to infections or chemical reactions and do not even have great strength," said Dr. Anil Kumar, director of National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation, which comes under the Union ministry of health and family welfare. “So, we are drafting technical guidelines for bone banking, detailing how to process bones, storage, what kind of infrastructure is needed, sterilization, who are the donors and recipients and which hospitals have bone banking facilities so that the government can track and trace the network.

The guidelines will suggest the know-how to the doctors about all safety measures, and training of doctors for bone banking facility," Dr. Kumar added. At present, only a few