Microplastics (MP) V1.0

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Are microplastics present in dental pulp? A chemical analysis of tissue from extracted teeth

• IRAS ID

  335506

• Contact name

  Shanon Patel

• Contact email

  shanon.patel@kcl.ac.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

• Duration of Study in the UK

  2 years, 2 months, 30 days

• Research summary

  Plastic waste is accumulating in our seas and in our soil. Over time, it is broken down into smaller particles, called microplastics. Microplastic pollution is omnipresent in our environment and our diet and it is being found deposited in various human tissues e.g. human blood, breast milk and placental tissue. A review of the literature has found there is strong evidence that microplastics deposited in living tissue trigger inflammation and aid bacterial biofilm formation. No research to date has examined the dental pulp for microplastics yet this conceivably would have high clinical relevance as the pulp has limited capacity to resist inflammation and biofilms.
  This study aims to take pulp biopsies from extracted human teeth to assess dental pulp tissue for presence of microplastics and if present, evaluate any associations between microplastic incidence and patient demographic and tooth-specific factors. The teeth used in this study will be collected from oral surgery departments extracting teeth as part of routine patient care. Patients participating in this research will be given information leaflets about the study and will sign consent forms to donate their extracted tooth / teeth. The extracted teeth would otherwise be disposed of as clinical waste. Some participants will donate a single tooth while others may be able to donate multiple. The number of teeth each participant is able to donate will depend on how many teeth are extracted during their clinical appointment. Participants will not be asked to donate any more teeth than the ones that are planned for extraction in their appointment.
  

• REC name

  Yorkshire & The Humber - Sheffield Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  24/YH/0101

• Date of REC Opinion

  1 May 2024

• REC opinion

  Favourable Opinion