Bone allografts in spinal surgery.

Despite long-standing interest by orthopedic surgeons in the replacement of diseased segments of the spine with grafts from other individuals, progress in this direction does not extend beyond the last two decades. One of the reasons for a relatively slow rate of progress in these endeavors was the lack of individuals and organizations devoted to safely obtaining and preparing bone allografts for routine clinical transplantation. In an effort to overcome this difficulty, a Tissue Bank was established at the University of Miami-Jackson Medical Center. The service offered by this bank provided an impetus for the clinical study and use of freeze-dried bone allografts, not only in our institution but also extended to orthopedic and neurologic surgeons throughout the United States.