What is Plastination?
Plastination is a scientific process used to preserve the anatomy of a human or animal. In plastination, the water and fat within the body are replaced by plastic, which makes the corpse virtually incapable of decaying. It is a way to maintain and preserve the shape and appearance of the body and the internal organs, which can be very valuable for medical students, among others. In the plastination process, the body is first embalmed in formaldehyde, then placed in a freezing solution, acetone, which replaces the water in the cells. The body is then submerged in a pool of liquid polymer, such as silicon rubber or polyester. The acetone within the body begins to boil and evaporate, and is replaced by the plastic solution. The plastic can then be cured by UV light, gas, or heat, which will harden the body into a fixed shape. The plastination technique was developed by Dr. Gunther von Hagens in 1978, who obtained three separate patents for his work with plastination. Initially, plastinati
The preservation and demonstration of anatomical specimens that retain much of their natural features has been a long-standing goal of anatomists, pathologists and other medical educators. Preservation of most biological tissues is performed using liquids such as formaldehyde, alcohol, and glycerin. Although these commonly used liquids are efficient, they have many disadvantages. Plastination is a technique of tissue preservation developed by Gunther von Hagens in 1977 consists of forced impregnation of biological specimens with plastic resins. Plastinated specimens offer advantages over other methods of preservation because they are anatomically precise, clean, dry and easy to handle. These specimens provide an excellent tool for teaching anatomy and pathology, for patient education, and potentially as an augmentation to MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and CT (computer tomography) analysis. Specimens produced by plastination are dry, odorless, rather durable and usually free from enc
A method of preserving perishable biological specimens by replacing the tissue water and lipid with a curable plastic polymer. The specimens preserved in this manner are permanent, clean, non-toxic and dry. • How is it done? – There are a variety of different plastination methods available. Each has advantages and disavantages and yeilds specimens with different characteristics. • Why is it useful in Anatomy? – Plastinated specimens retain textures and structures of tissue and are therefore an invaluable teaching resource in anatomy. Plastinated specimens have none of the usual hazards and restrictions associated with the study of anatomical specimens eg. use of gloves, toxic fumes, contagions etc, and are more robust than the original specimen. • Articles and Abstracts – Some portions of my articles are given below. • Photo Gallery – Some examples of plastinated specimens.
