Contaminated Tissue

The recent arrest of several people for illegally harvesting and selling tissue has caused concerned about the possibility of contaminated tissue being used in transplants.

Although procedures exist to prevent the use of contaminated tissue, this case highlights the ability of criminals to circumvent the processes set up by the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

When the guidelines are not followed there are no medical precautions taken to ensure that the tissue transplants are free from contamination by disease or defect. In the current case of the illegal harvesting, it was not clear if any of the suspected contaminated tissue had been implanted in patients.

Transplantation of tissues such as muscle, skin and bone is common in the US. Trade in implantable body parts is legal, providing that certain conditions are met to ensure the tissue is not contaminated.

If a patient has received contaminated tissue, it opens the possibility of lawsuits

Deciding who is liable in such a case should be left to experienced lawyers in contaminated tissue cases.