Detection of microplastics in human veins

(MENAFN) A group of researchers from the University of Hull reported last week that microplastics had been discovered for the first time in human vascular tissue. In samples collected from the saphenous (leg) veins of patients having cardiac bypass surgery, five different forms of microplastic were found.

In a news statement that accompanied the paper's publication in the journal PLoS One, Professor Jeanette Rotchell claimed that “we were surprised to find them.” Noting that “we already know microplastics are in blood…but it was not clear whether they could cross blood vessels into vascular tissue and this work would suggest they can do just that.”

The researchers from the United Kingdom discovered an average of 15 plastic particles per gram of vein tissue, which is comparable to or higher than the levels discovered in lung and colon tissue. Nonetheless, they also noticed that the shape and types of plastic found in vascular tissue were noticeably different from those found in other tissue types.

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