06/08/2026
One of the most impactful statements made in this post: " The microplastic story has moved from environmental to internal medicine in the span of 24 months."
Microplastics in human tissue stopped being a theoretical concern in 2024. Three studies in top journals over the past two years have moved this from "possibly relevant" to "directly measured in human blood and atherosclerotic plaque."
Marfella and colleagues (2024, New England Journal of Medicine) ran the study that changed the conversation. 304 patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy for asymptomatic carotid artery disease had their excised plaque specimens analyzed for microplastics and nanoplastics using pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, stable isotope analysis, and electron microscopy.
257 patients completed a mean 33.7-month follow-up. Polyethylene was detected in plaques from 150 patients (58.4%), at a mean concentration of 21.7 µg per milligram of plaque tissue. 31 patients (12.1%) also had measurable polyvinyl chloride. Electron microscopy showed visible, jagged-edged foreign particles inside plaque macrophages. Patients with detectable microplastics in their plaque had a hazard ratio of 4.53 (95% CI 2.00 to 10.27, p
