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Percutaneous coronary intervention leads to microplastics entering the blood: Interventional devices are a major source
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Researchers measured microplastic levels in the blood of 23 patients before and after heart stent procedures (percutaneous coronary intervention) and found that microplastic concentrations jumped nearly 19-fold after the procedure. The types of plastics found in the blood matched those detected on the medical devices used during the procedure, confirming that the devices themselves were the source. This study reveals that common medical procedures using plastic equipment may be an overlooked route for microplastics to enter the human bloodstream.
Microplastics (MPs) is an emerging pollutant potentially harmful to health. Medical practices using plastic devices, such as percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), may result in MPs entering into the blood. The purpose of this study was to quantify the effect of PCI on microplastic levels in patients' blood. Laser direct infrared (LDIR) was used to detect MPs in the blood of 23 patients before and after PCI. MPs in the water in which devices used in PCI were washed were also examined. The concentration of MPs in the blood was significantly elevated (93.57 ± 35.95 vs. 4.96 ± 3.40 particles/10 mL of blood, P < 0.001) after PCI compared to before, and the increased MPs were polyamide (PA), polyethylene (PE), polyurethane (PU), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which was consistent with the types of MPs detected in the device washing water. The maximum diameter of MPs in blood before PCI was 50 µm, whereas after PCI it was 213 µm, and even 336 µm in device washing water. These findings indicated that PCI will cause MPs to enter the blood, and devices used during PCI were a major source, a range of medical practices that use plastic devices may be a new route for MPs to enter the human body.
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