Retesting of bone donors 2 months after donation guarantees sufficient safety of bone allografts

Abstract

Both allogeneic bone grafting and blood transfusion may transmit infections from the donor to the recipient. The most effective means to reduce the risk of infection is careful donor selection and screening of donors for markers of infection. The risk of blood transfusion-transmitted HIV infection in Finland, calculated with the incidence/window period model, is approximately 1: 3,300,000. The calculated risk for hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) is 1: 217,000 and 1: 147,000 donations, respectively. In bone banking we can further reduce the risks by retesting the living donors. Retesting 2 months after donation seems to be sufficient, at least in countries with a low incidence of transplantation-transmitted infections.