High hydrostatic pressure, a novel approach in orthopedic surgical oncology to disinfect bone, tendons and cartilage.

High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) is widely used in the food processing industry, for example to inactivate vegetative microorganisms in meat products, milk and juice, thereby avoiding the addition of any chemical preservatives. Besides this, HHP is also an attractive novel approach to effectively kill vegetative microorganisms or tumor cells in bone, cartilage and tendon ex vivo while leaving the tissues' mechanical properties unimpaired, thus allowing reimplantation of the resected tissue explants. In contrast, sterilization by gamma irradiation and thermal or chemical inactivation of potentially infected autografts, allografts and other biomaterials considered for tissue regeneration and reconstruction is often associated with deterioration of the mechanical, physical and biological properties of the implant. HHP technology is now in preclinical testing with the aim of disinfecting/devitalizing grafts in order to inactivate both vegetative microorganisms and tumor cells in resected bone tissue segments, eventually allowing reimplantation of resected bone segments initially afflicted with osteomyelitis or tumors. The technical advantages, state-of-the-art, and potential application of HHP in orthopedic surgery are reviewed.