NEW DELHI: The first Delhi-government run bone bank at the Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) hospital, which was inaugurated in June, has not done any procedure till date for want of a licence. The facility was inaugurated by Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on June 9 this year and was touted as a game changer for orthopaedic medicine. Jain had then said that this is the first such facility and the registration will happen in the next two months. However, it has not yet started functioning even after more than six months to its launch.
Bone banks are required for providing biological material for different orthopaedic procedures, ranging from trauma cases to arthoplastic procedures such as hip replacement. The banks collect grafts from cadaver donors and are used for reconstruction on people who lose their limbs due to large defects caused by cancer, an injury, or an infection. While autologous bone (bone taken out from the patient’s body) is ideal for grafting, it is often not available sufficiently. The hospital had applied for a clearance from the Delhi government but its application was returned, citing lack of trained persons to perform the procedure.
Dr AK Jain, head of orthopaedic department in GTB, said, “There are some basic requirements in the new tissue banking guidelines which the facility is lacking. We need trained and specialised staff for bone banking which we don’t have. We are exploring what can be done.
We will meet the norms and apply afresh again.” For now the division is not undertaking any clinical work and carrying out research, he said.The hospital administration also does not have the approval from Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) which gives green signal for the radiation facility to preserve the harvested bone.
Permission from BARC is needed as the bone is given radiation and is harmful for humans. After giving radiation to the bone it can be preserved for 10 years for further utilisation.“Why did the government inaugurate it in the first place when they knew there are shortcomings? said an official from NOTTO. Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain was not available for a comment.
Importance of the bank
Bone banks are required for providing biological material for different orthopaedic procedures Experts said bone bank facility could give patients suffering bone loss huge relief