Glossary

ALLOGRAFT: Tissue or cells recovered from one individual and intended for transplantation into another individual of the same species.

ASEPTIC: This refers to the condition of being free from all forms of life, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. ASEPTIC TECHNIQUE refers to efforts to maintain a sterile field during a procedure to prevent infection. These efforts include utilizing sterilized instruments and supplies and requiring staff to wear sterile gloves and other clothing such as caps, gowns and masks to reduce potential contamination.

AUTOGRAFT: Tissue or cells recovered from an individual and transplanted back into that same individual.

CANCELLOUS: An adjective used to describe something as being spongy or lattice-like in character. When referring to bone it describes the type of bone found in the marrow cavities of the long bones.

CARTILAGE: A form of dense connective tissue composed of cells in a dense matrix. Cartilage comes in several specific types but commonly is associated with the type that is found lining the surfaces of bones forming a joint. Cartilage reduces wear and tear on the bones and allows for smooth movement in the joint.

CORTICAL BONE: This refers to bone recovered from the cortex, which is the very hard and dense outer layer of bone found on most elements of the skeleton. Cortical bone has a very specific structure and is responsible for most of the strength associated with bone.

CRYOPRESERVATION: This is the use of low temperatures to preserve cells or tissue. Often a chemical substance is added to protect the cells from damage during the freezing and thawing of the materials.

HOMOLOGOUS: This means that a transplanted tissue provides the same function in its new location. For example, while a graft may come from a leg of a donor and be placed in a spine of a recipient, the function of the graft is fundamentally the same – to provide support.

DEMINERALIZED BONE: Allograft bone that has been treated to remove most of the mineral component of the bone and consists mainly of the connective tissue matrix and proteins. Demineralized bone has osteoinductive properties.

DURA MATER: The outer dense connective tissue layer that covers and encloses the brain and spinal cord.

OSTEOARTICULAR GRAFT: An allograft that is composed of the bone, articular cartilage and tendons of a joint that is used to replace a diseased or damaged joint in the recipient. In many cases the use of an osteoarticular allograft can prevent the amputation of a limb.

OSTEOCHONDRAL GRAFT: An allograft consisting of cartilage.

OSTEOINDUCTIVE: The ability of a material or substance to induce undifferentiated cells within the marrow or connective tissue to differentiate into cells capable of producing bone.

SPINAL FUSION: A surgical procedure designed to stabilize and immobilize adjacent vertebrae. This procedure is performed for a variety of reasons, including herniated disks, degenerative diseases and traumatic injury. The use of allograft/autograft bone is very common. The process may be used alone or in conjunction with various manmade prosthetic devices.