Skip to main content

Surgeons Are Finding Microplastics in Human Hearts

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.

By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Aug. 10, 2023 -- Microplastics appear to be everywhere, including within the tissues of the human heart.

A new Chinese report describes doctors finding microplastics in heart tissue both before and after heart surgery. The researchers also noted there is evidence suggesting that microplastics may have been unexpectedly introduced during the heart procedures.

The researchers, who included Kun Hua and Xiubin Yang from Capital Medical University in Beijing, collected heart tissue samples from 15 people during cardiac surgeries. They also gathered blood samples from the patients both before and after surgery.

These plastic fragments can enter the human body through mouths, noses and other body cavities. The full extent of microplastics inside the body isn’t known because most organs and tissues are fully enclosed within the body.

In this study, the team analyzed the samples with laser direct infrared imaging, identifying 20- to 500-micrometer-wide particles made from eight types of plastic. These included polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride and poly(methyl methacrylate).

Most tissue samples had tens of thousands of individual microplastic pieces. The blood samples also contained plastic particles. However, the average size of those particles decreased after surgery.

The findings were reported recently in the American Chemical Society’s Environmental Science & Technology journal.

The study was small but provides preliminary evidence that microplastics can accumulate and persist in the heart. Invasive medical procedures are an overlooked route of microplastics exposure, the authors noted in a society news release.

More research will be necessary to fully understand the effects of microplastics on a person’s cardiovascular system.

Sources

  • American Chemical Society, news release, Aug. 9, 2023

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted August 2023

Read this next

Blood Loss Drives Higher Death Rate for Women During Bypass Surgeries

FRIDAY, April 12, 2024 -- It's long been documented that women have a slimmer chance of surviving heart bypass surgery compared to men, and researchers believe that they now know...

Abiomed Heart Pumps Linked to 49 Deaths

MONDAY, April 1, 2024 -- A new warning is being issued over a heart pump whose use could perforate the heart. The device has already been linked to over 100 injuries and 49...

Treatment Used on Donated Hearts May Be Useless, Even Harmful: Study

FRIDAY, Dec. 1, 2023 -- A technique doctors use to preserve donated organs is actually doing no good, and might even be harming the organs, a new study reports. Physicians...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.