Ahl Masr Hospital Handles Egypt’s First Donated Human Skin Shipment

Ahl Masr Foundation and Hospital for Burn Treatment said it has received Egypt’s first shipment of donated frozen human skin for burn care, a first-of-its-kind delivery brought in under the oversight of the Cabinet, the Ministry of Health and Population, the Ministry of Social Solidarity and the Egyptian Drug Authority. The foundation said the material will be used as a temporary biological cover for major burns following early excision, addressing cases where patients lack sufficient healthy skin for grafting, particularly when burns involve more than 40% of body surface area. Donated human skin is shipped and stored at minus 80C to maintain integrity, making rapid clearance of shipments important for clinical use. The use of banked donated human skin has been in place internationally since 1949 with the establishment of the first skin bank. This technique has contributed to reduced mortality and survival rates exceeding 90% in severe burn care. According to Ahl Masr, the hospital will use the shipment to perform natural skin graft procedures using donated human skin, making it the first hospital in Egypt to conduct these operations. The foundation also noted that children account for 70% of burn injuries in Egypt, and the availability of donated human skin provides immediate wound coverage to facilitate earlier closure and prepare patients for subsequent treatment stages.