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bone graft
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bone graft

medicine
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Quick Summary

A bone graft is a surgical procedure used to repair bone. In medicine, it involves transplanting bone tissue.

There are two main types of bone grafts:
* Autografts: Bone is taken from one site on the patient's body and transplanted to another. These are valuable for helping fractures heal when they fail to unite on their own.1
* Allografts: Bone is taken from a donor. While useful as a structural scaffold, allografts are less effective than autografts because the bone cells are either dead or rejected by the recipient's body, preventing active healing.1

It is important to distinguish this from a bone marrow transplant, which involves transferring bone marrow from a healthy donor to a recipient with diseased bone marrow. Bone marrow transplants are used to treat various blood disorders, cancers, and immune deficiencies.2

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
2 Britannica Sources
  1. transplant - Bone
  2. bone marrow transplant

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