Brief history of the tissue bank, charles university hospital, hradec králové, czech republic.

A brief history of the Tissue Bank (TB) of the University Hospital Hradec Králové, Czech Republic, established by Dr. R. Klen in 1952 is presented. In Dr. Klen's original concept the TB was defined as a department specialised in the harvesting, processing, preservation, storage and distribution of various kinds of tissue for clinical and experimental practice. The first kinds of tissue collected in cadaveric donors were corneas, bone and skin. Xenogeneic cartilage and bone grafts were prepared at the same time. Later, preparation of soft connective tissues and chorion-amnion was introduced. During the first 15 years of activity a total of 11,443 grafts preserved by hypothermy at +4 degrees C or freezing in absence of cryoprotectants (-20 degrees C) were prepared. In the 60's freeze-drying of tissue grafts was introduced and the bank of cryopreserved cell lines was established. In the 80's cryopreservation of haematopoietic progenitor cells for clinical transplantations was started and the spectrum of tissue grafts was enlarged (xenogeneic pericardium and allogeneic specially treated dura mater for neurosurgical operations, pigskin for burn treatment, demineralised bone for parodontology and implantology). In the 90's human keratinocyte culture for treatment of burns and chronic skin defects was started. The human milk bank and organ bank co-operating with the Regional Transplantation Centre are component parts of the TB as well. The TB is an institutional member of the European Association of Tissue Banks and annually delivers approximately 1000 grafts that are used in University and county hospitals as well as in surgeons' private practices. Health insurance companies reimburse all grafts on a non-profit and tax-free basis.