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Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States

[Image: see text] The healthcare sector is a driver of economic growth in the U.S., with spending on healthcare in 2012 reaching $2.8 trillion, or 17% of the U.S. gross domestic product, but it is also a significant source of emissions that adversely impact environmental and public health. The curre...

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Autores principales: Thiel, Cassandra L., Eckelman, Matthew, Guido, Richard, Huddleston, Matthew, Landis, Amy E., Sherman, Jodi, Shrake, Scott O., Copley-Woods, Noe, Bilec, Melissa M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: American Chemical Society 2014
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4319686/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25517602
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es504719g
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author Thiel, Cassandra L.
Eckelman, Matthew
Guido, Richard
Huddleston, Matthew
Landis, Amy E.
Sherman, Jodi
Shrake, Scott O.
Copley-Woods, Noe
Bilec, Melissa M.
author_facet Thiel, Cassandra L.
Eckelman, Matthew
Guido, Richard
Huddleston, Matthew
Landis, Amy E.
Sherman, Jodi
Shrake, Scott O.
Copley-Woods, Noe
Bilec, Melissa M.
author_sort Thiel, Cassandra L.
collection PubMed
description [Image: see text] The healthcare sector is a driver of economic growth in the U.S., with spending on healthcare in 2012 reaching $2.8 trillion, or 17% of the U.S. gross domestic product, but it is also a significant source of emissions that adversely impact environmental and public health. The current state of the healthcare industry offers significant opportunities for environmental efficiency improvements, potentially leading to reductions in costs, resource use, and waste without compromising patient care. However, limited research exists that can provide quantitative, sustainable solutions. The operating room is the most resource-intensive area of a hospital, and surgery is therefore an important focal point to understand healthcare-related emissions. Hybrid life cycle assessment (LCA) was used to quantify environmental emissions from four different surgical approaches (abdominal, vaginal, laparoscopic, and robotic) used in the second most common major procedure for women in the U.S., the hysterectomy. Data were collected from 62 cases of hysterectomy. Life cycle assessment results show that major sources of environmental emissions include the production of disposable materials and single-use surgical devices, energy used for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, and anesthetic gases. By scientifically evaluating emissions, the healthcare industry can strategically optimize its transition to a more sustainable system.
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spelling pubmed-43196862015-12-17 Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States Thiel, Cassandra L. Eckelman, Matthew Guido, Richard Huddleston, Matthew Landis, Amy E. Sherman, Jodi Shrake, Scott O. Copley-Woods, Noe Bilec, Melissa M. Environ Sci Technol [Image: see text] The healthcare sector is a driver of economic growth in the U.S., with spending on healthcare in 2012 reaching $2.8 trillion, or 17% of the U.S. gross domestic product, but it is also a significant source of emissions that adversely impact environmental and public health. The current state of the healthcare industry offers significant opportunities for environmental efficiency improvements, potentially leading to reductions in costs, resource use, and waste without compromising patient care. However, limited research exists that can provide quantitative, sustainable solutions. The operating room is the most resource-intensive area of a hospital, and surgery is therefore an important focal point to understand healthcare-related emissions. Hybrid life cycle assessment (LCA) was used to quantify environmental emissions from four different surgical approaches (abdominal, vaginal, laparoscopic, and robotic) used in the second most common major procedure for women in the U.S., the hysterectomy. Data were collected from 62 cases of hysterectomy. Life cycle assessment results show that major sources of environmental emissions include the production of disposable materials and single-use surgical devices, energy used for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, and anesthetic gases. By scientifically evaluating emissions, the healthcare industry can strategically optimize its transition to a more sustainable system. American Chemical Society 2014-12-17 2015-02-03 /pmc/articles/PMC4319686/ /pubmed/25517602 http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es504719g Text en Copyright © 2014 American Chemical Society This is an open access article published under an ACS AuthorChoice License (http://pubs.acs.org/page/policy/authorchoice_termsofuse.html) , which permits copying and redistribution of the article or any adaptations for non-commercial purposes.
spellingShingle Thiel, Cassandra L.
Eckelman, Matthew
Guido, Richard
Huddleston, Matthew
Landis, Amy E.
Sherman, Jodi
Shrake, Scott O.
Copley-Woods, Noe
Bilec, Melissa M.
Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title_full Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title_fullStr Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title_full_unstemmed Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title_short Environmental Impacts of Surgical Procedures: Life Cycle Assessment of Hysterectomy in the United States
title_sort environmental impacts of surgical procedures: life cycle assessment of hysterectomy in the united states
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4319686/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25517602
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es504719g
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