ReviewEnvironmental technology & innovation2022
Microplastics waste in environment: A perspective on recycling issues from PPE kits and face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Review in Environmental technology & innovation, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Masks and respirators for prevention of respiratory infections: a state of the science review.Clinical microbiology reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Responses of gut microbial community and metabolic function to disposable face mask of Zophobas atratus larvae.Advanced biotechnology · 2026Article
- Face mask littering: environmental impacts, regulatory challenges, and AI-driven waste management strategies for the postpandemic era.Turkish journal of medical sciences · 2026Review
- Valorization of Unused, Expired Surgical Masks in Polymer-Modified Bitumens Using Maleic Anhydride as a Compatibilizer.Polymers · 2025Article
- Interaction of cyanobacteria and microplastics polystyrene spiked with pharmaceutical drug-paracetamol.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Reusable Personal Protective Equipment Viewed Through the Lens of Sustainability.International dental journal · 2024Review
- Article
- A New Paradigm on Waste-to-Energy Applying Hydrovoltaic Energy Harvesting Technology to Face Masks.Polymers · 2024Article
- Thymol, a Monoterpenoid within Polymeric Iodophor Formulations and Their Antimicrobial Activities.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Green Synthesized Polymeric Iodophors with Thyme as Antimicrobial Agents.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Toxicity of gold nanoparticles complicated by the co-existence multiscale plastics.Frontiers in microbiology · 2024Article
- Infrastructure in the Age of Pandemics: Utilizing Polypropylene-Based Mask Waste for Durable and Sustainable Road Pavements.Polymers · 2023Article
- Disposable facemask waste combustion emits neuroactive smoke particulate matter.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Review
- Global face mask pollution: threats to the environment and wildlife, and potential solutions.The Science of the total environment · 2023Review
- Personal protective equipment-derived pollution during Covid-19 era: A critical review of ecotoxicology impacts, intervention strategies, and future challenges.The Science of the total environment · 2023Review
- Research progress in preparation, properties, and applications of medical protective fiber materials.Applied materials today · 2023Review
- Advanced and Smart Textiles during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic: Issues, Challenges, and Innovations.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Article
- Environmental footprints of disposable and reusable personal protective equipment ‒ a product life cycle approach for body coveralls.Journal of cleaner production · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the extensive use of face masks and protective personal equipment (PPE) kits has led to increasing degree of microplastic pollution (MP) because they are typically discarded into the seas, rivers, streets, and other parts of the environment. Currently, microplastic (MP) pollution has a negative impact on the environment because of high-level fragmentation. Typically, MP pollution can be detected by various techniques, such as microscopic analysis, density separation, and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry. However, there are limited studies on disposable face masks and PPE kits. A wide range of marine species ingest MPs in the form of fibers and fragments, which directly affect the environment and human health; thus, more research and development are needed on the effect of MP pollution on human health. This article provides a perspective on the origin and distribution of MP pollution in waterbodies (e.g., rivers, ponds, lakes, and seas) and wastewater treatment plants, and reviews the possible remediation of MP pollution related to the excessive disposal of face masks and PPE kits to aquatic environments.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.