QUALITY ISSUES IN SKIN BANKING - A REVIEW

Over the last decade the concept of quality in healthcare has gained i ncreasing prominence, not least in the field of skin and tissue bankin g. This was brought into sharp focus by the appearance of HIV, however , over the decade other viruses have also gained notoriety, e.g. Hepat itis C. The risk of cross infection has been the major factor driving tissue and blood banking towards ever improving standards of quality, which have been reinforced by national legislation and regulations, an d professional standards. This has also provided an opportunity to con sider other aspects of skin banking that might also affect quality and to offer standards or guidelines to optimise these aspects. The purpo se of this review is to highlight these various quality issues in orde r to allow surgeons to make informed choices and decisions regarding t heir sources and uses of skin allografts. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Lt d for ISBI. All rights reserved.