A study published in the ‘Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, described an outbreak of tuberculosis linked to contaminated bone allografts in the US.

On July 7, 2023, a patient who had spinal fusion surgery, which incorporated a bone allograft, experienced symptoms of meningitis about 5 weeks after surgery. On testing, Mycobacterium tuberculosis was identified in the patient's cerebrospinal fluid.

Similarly, on July 11, 2023, a patient complained of a persistent surgical site infection after using the same bone allograft during a back surgery. Drainage from the site also showed M. tuberculosis.

Within hours of this July 11, 2023 case, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommended that any unused units of tissue be quarantined and recipients be evaluated and started on multidrug treatment for TB disease, regardless of signs and symptoms. This quick notification prevented at least 53 subsequent transplants with the contaminated tissue. However, the two initial cases succumbed to death.

These incidents are a reminder that TB has not been eliminated in the US and stress the need for screening of donor tissue.