Fractionation of high-dose electron beam irradiation of BPTB grafts provides significantly improved viscoelastic and structural properties compared to standard gamma irradiation

Purpose Irradiation >30 kGy is required to achieve sterility against bacterial and viral pathogens in ACL allograft sterilization. However, doses >20 kGy substantially reduce the structural properties of soft-tissue grafts. Fractionation of irradiation doses is a standard procedure in oncology to reduce tissue damage but has not been applied in tissue graft sterilization.