Question

Does amniotic membrane require ethical approval before use

Answer 1

Ethical approval is considered valid in these cases, as, of we are about to transplant amniotic membrane there can be a medium for transmission for infectious and viral pathogens, this is common because when a transplantation of a human organ or tissue is performed they will definitely attract and store some of the most virulent diseases, so, for safety reasons the safety criteria for a organ transplantation has to be implied in a more stricter and strenuous manner otherwise the tissue membranous transplanting of amniotic membrane can travel to other hosts providing a dangerous opportunity to make a new home (for pathogenic substances). There should be a ethical approval from the committee which is handling the transplantation procedure as the amnion can make its way to open wounds (some of the applications for amniotic membrane) lastly entering the human body. The procedure should contain medical history of the donor including social history (required if any contact has been made with another infected person or patient), testing for various diseases should be done primarily ones which have caused a havoc for Humanity, such as, the well-known virus HIV, hepatitis, HCV, etc. which have the ability to transfer from bodily fluids including diseases caused by prions such as, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease and kuru. The tissues should be processed under good and statutory conditions which does not lead to any contamination and there should be some well handling techniques for tissue transplant.