Human umbilical cord. A new source for vascular prosthesis.

Reconstructions were performed to the popliteal, tibial, and peroneal arteries employing a modified umbilical cord vein prosthesis. The latter was obtained from human cords and was made available as an onshelf graft for surgery following glutaraldehyde tanning. The early patency and limb salvage rates are equivalent to those obtained with autogenous saphenous veins. Additional benefits include significant decreased operative time and morbidity. It is also probable that this new graft may be resistant to biodegradation and therefore may obviate many of the causes for late failure that occur with the use of living biologic tissues or collagen tubes. Long-term follow-up and study are essential to validate the results obtained thus far and to assess the potential of this new graft in a variety of vascular reconstructions.