'Getting Under our Skin': Introducing Banked Allograft Skin to Burn Surgery in South Africa

ABSTRACT

Deceased donor skin possesses many of the properties of the ideal biological dressing; and a well-stocked skin bank has become a critically important asset for the modern burn surgeon. Without it; managing patients with extensive burns and wounds becomes far more challenging; and outcomes are significantly worse. With the recent establishment of such a bank in South Africa; the challenge facing the medical fraternity is to facilitate tissue donation so that allograft skin supply can match the enormous demand