{"id":25794,"date":"2024-11-22T12:04:56","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T11:04:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gewebenetzwerk.de\/?p=25794"},"modified":"2024-11-22T12:16:23","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T11:16:23","slug":"dgfg-visiting-the-9th-alabat-congress-in-colombia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gewebenetzwerk.de\/en\/dgfg-visiting-the-9th-alabat-congress-in-colombia\/","title":{"rendered":"DGFG visiting the 9th ALABAT Congress in Colombia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Safe and rapid patient care with tissue transplants – a mission that unites.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

DGFG visiting the 9th ALABAT Congress in Colombia. <\/strong><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>The 9th ALABAT Congress took place from 6 to 8 November in Bogot\u00e1, Colombia. An opportunity for representatives of tissue banks to exchange experiences, present developments, identify common challenges and use synergies. The German Society for Tissue Transplantation (DGFG) participated with presentations on tissue processing and organisational structure and enabled speakers to attend the conference through a travel grant – financed by fundraising to promote international networking in tissue medicine. <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/div>
\n
\n

<\/b>The Congress of the Association of Latin American Tissue Banks (ALABAT) is held every two years. With a total of 150 participants and 45 speakers from 17 different countries, this year’s conference in Colombia was the largest to date.<\/p>\n

\n

\u2019My impression is that this was so far the most important ALABAT congress. With the participation of various organisations and authorities, the exchange was comprehensive, proactive and decisive for the next two years in tissue medicine in Latin America,’ says Dr Francisco Mart\u00ednez, President of ALABAT and Director of the Skin and Tissue Bank at the National Rehabilitation Institute in Mexico.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>

<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\n

During the three days, the donation situation in the individual countries, the approach of the tissue banks to the processing of the different tissues, the quality assurance in the banks and the country-specific legal regulations were presented and discussed in a total of ten thematic blocks. Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Mexico already have access to a network of several tissue banks and are partly linked to national tissue donation organisations. In countries such as Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Nicaragua, tissue banks linked to clinics operate mostly autonomously.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\n

Latin American countries face similar challenges<\/h3>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

SATIBA Congress<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\n
<\/span><\/span><\/div>
\n

However, it became clear during the congress that the challenges faced in tissue donation programmes and banks in different Latin American countries are often the same. Inadequate funding of public health systems, high inflation rates, and the financing of imported goods, such as the nutrient solutions used to preserve corneas, make it difficult for tissue banks to move away from imported tissue transplants. There is often a lack of standardised and tested quality standards for tissue transplants, as well as a lack of public awareness and willingness to donate tissue. The conference discussed some solutions that have already been implemented. Meanwhile, the motivation to work on further solutions is high.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>
\n

\n
\n

‘It is great to see how much has happened in individual tissue banks and different countries since the last congress two years ago. Things are moving forward – but above all, donation programmes need to be expanded. With improved organisation, Latin America could become self-sufficient in tissue transplants and no longer depend on expensive imports from abroad. There is still a long way to go, but congresses like this show how important the exchange and cooperations are for each individual tissue bank,’ says Martin B\u00f6rgel, Managing Director of the DGFG and Secretary General of the WUTBA (World Union of Tissue Banking Associations).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div>\n