Allograft bone: Uses in spinal surgery

Allograft bone has been and continues to be an important adjunct in producing spinal fusion. Bone allograft encompasses cadaveric cancellous bone, cadaveric cortical bone, demineralized bone matrix, and allografts containing mesenchymal stem cells. Each type of graft has different properties in terms of osteconductive, osteoinductive, and osteogenic abilities. Bone allograft is used to enhance fusion, extend autograft, or substitute for autograft. When choosing the type of allograft, it is important to determine if the allograft will be providing a structural or nonstructural need. The use of bone allograft continues to climb in that United States and there are many studies showing how allograft has been successfully used to produce fusion in cervical and lumbar applications. Allograft undergoes extensive safety testing and is considered safe by most surgeons. However, there can be significant variability in graft properties amongst similar graft types.