Tainted Tissues
The human tissue bank industry, which earns an estimated $1 billion annually, was probed last fall when allegations got out about an alleged body-snatching ring and stolen body parts and organs.
Surgeons perform hundreds of thousands of tissue transplants annually involving spinal surgery, dental implants, facial reconstruction, and severe fractures, among others. Although infections related to transplants are rare, they can be devastating. Tissue banks must closely screen donors for infectious diseases in accordance with new guidelines administered by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in May 2005 that federally regulate the screening and inspection of human tissue. Patients who have received a tissue transplant or bone graft and have been diagnosed with Hepatitis, HIV, Syphilis, or other infectious diseases without any explanation should seek the advice of a lawyer. If you feel you may have a potential case regarding Tainted Tissue transplants, fill out our free case evaluation form.
Recently, tissue was harvested by a New Jersey company called Biomedical Tissue Services (BTS), which is now being investigated for allegedly stealing tissue from corpses at a New York funeral home, omitting the mandatory disease screening process, and sending it on to a company called Regeneration Technologies for cleaning. Shortly thereafter, it was sent out to larger tissue banks for distribution to hospitals throughout the United States.
The human tissue bank has been under increased scrutiny following an FDA probe last fall into an alleged body-snatching ring and allegations of stolen body parts and organs. However, this reaches far beyond the recent investigation and may include thousands of transplants of human tissue obtained both legally and illegally.
Victims of tainted tissue transplants may have undergone treatment as far back as late 2003, and hospitals nationwide have reported receipt of the illegally harvested and potentially dangerous tissue that includes human tissue, bone, skin, and tendons.
The following tissue processors received tissue from BTS:
- LifeCell Corporation - Branchburg, NJ
- Lost Mountain Tissue Bank - Kennesaw, GA
- Blood and Tissue Center of Central Texas - Austin, TX
- Tutogen Medical, Inc. - Alachua, FL
- Regeneration Technologies, Inc. - Alachua, FL
In March 2006, the FDA notified healthcare professionals and strongly recommended that they inform patients who received these tissue implants that they have an increased risk of infectious disease and should be tested by their physician.
Additional links to help inform you on Tainted Tissues: