ReviewTurkish journal of medical sciences2026
Face mask littering: environmental impacts, regulatory challenges, and AI-driven waste management strategies for the postpandemic era.
Review in Turkish journal of medical sciences, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The widespread use of polypropylene-based face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic created a significant and persistent source of plastic pollution. This review aims to provide an integrative assessment of the environmental, toxicological, and public health implications of face mask litter and evaluate current waste management challenges and emerging technological solutions in the postpandemic context. A narrative review approach was employed, synthesizing literature published between 2020 and 2025 and indexed in major scientific databases including Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed. Studies were selected based on their relevance to the issues of environmental contamination, microplastic generation, toxicological effects, regulatory frameworks, and artificial intelligence (AI)-based waste management strategies. The findings indicate that discarded face masks are a major source of microplastics and hazardous chemical additives, contributing to environmental contamination across terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric systems. These materials may enter human exposure pathways through inhalation, ingestion, and dermal contact, with potential implications for respiratory health, systemic toxicity, and endocrine disruption. In addition, current waste management systems are shown to be insufficient for handling personal protective equipment-related waste, particularly under pandemic conditions. While AI-driven technologies can improve waste detection, sorting, and monitoring efficiency, their real-world scalability remains constrained by data limitations, infrastructure requirements, and environmental trade-offs. Overall, this review emphasizes that face mask pollution constitutes a multidimensional environmental and public health challenge requiring integrated responses. Strengthening regulatory frameworks, advancing sustainable material design, and combining AI-based tools with robust waste management systems are essential for mitigating long-term risks and improving preparedness for future global health crises.
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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.