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Cadaver Bone

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grapes1800
grapes1800

Has anyone had experiences or heard stories about the use of cadaver bone for spinal implants? I'll be having an ACDF soon, but due to my metal allergies I either have a choice of cadaver bone which will increase the hard collar recovery to 3 months if the neurosurgeon can't find tantalum (which I still have to get tested for, but no tests in my local hospitals can test for tantalum allergy). I heard a lot about cadaver bone not fusing and rates of transmission of diseases where some people developed head and neck cancer etc. Is it really safe?

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  • bry1234
    bry1234 grapes1800

    Posted

    I am a physician, I had a neck hernia resection and cadaver bone 3 years ago  with no problems.... I had a lumbar 3-4 fusion and bone graft Dec 2016 and within a week I developed a severe allergic reaction that continues, apparently from the bone graft, no other explanations appear valid...  I have deferred metal implants..  my allergy is likely to continue for 2-5 yrs...

    I would suggest that you have a skin or RASP test for allergy to nickel before proceeding with surgery.... it is very unlikely you will have an allergic reaction but there are no guarantees

    • grapes1800
      grapes1800 bry1234

      Posted

      A allergic reaction from a bone graft? I thought they tested those things..that is really unfortunate to hear. What symptoms are you having? Did you proceed with having it removed? I hope you get better soon.

      Yes I was tested positive for nickel allergy via patch testing. Although people say it's not a reliable test method compared to a blood test like the MELISA. Some articles even argue that metal sensitivity doesn't mean that you'll get an allergic reaction from an implant either but better being safe than sorry I suppose.

       

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