Sustainable management of medical equipment waste: integration between clinical engineering and environmental management
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20435/vol30iss76.4847Keywords:
circular economy, hospital management, medical device recycling, electronic wasteAbstract
Technological advancements in the healthcare sector drive the modernization of medical equipment, resulting in a significant increase in the generation of electronic waste, which consists of plastics, metals, and toxic substances. The management of this waste faces regulatory and technological challenges, particularly in developing countries. This article aims to explore, through a bibliometric analysis, the trends and gaps in the scientific literature regarding the management of obsolete medical equipment waste, with an emphasis on recycling practices and the integration of the circular economy, areas that have been little explored in an integrated manner. To achieve this, 73 scientific articles extracted from the PubMed database were analyzed using the VOSviewer software. The results highlighted the need for effective public policies and innovative technologies to mitigate environmental impacts and promote sustainability in the hospital sector, emphasizing clinical engineering as an essential element for integrating sustainable practices.
References
AKCIL, A. WEEE: Booming for sustainable recycling. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 57, p. 1-2, 2016. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2016.10.014
ARAÚJO, M. G.; MAGRINI, A.; MAHLER, C. F.; BILITEWSKI, B. A model for estimation of potential generation of waste electrical and electronic equipment in Brazil. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 32, n. 2, p. 335-342, 2012
CHAN, J. K.; WONG, M. H. A review of environmental fate, body burdens, and human health risk assessment of PCDD/Fs at two typical electronic waste recycling sites in China. Sci Total Environ, [S. l.], v. 463/464, oct. 2013. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2012.07.098
GONÇALVES, M. C.; GARCIA, E. M.; TAROCO, H. A.; GORGULHO, H. F.; MELO, J. O.; SILVA, R. R.; SOUZA, A. G. Chemical recycling of cell phone Li-ion batteries: Application in environmental remediation. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 40, p. 144-150, 2015. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2015.02.014
KANG, D. H. P.; CHEN, M.; OGUNSEITAN, O. A. Potential environmental and human health impacts of rechargeable lithium batteries in electronic waste. Environmental Science & Technology, [S. l.], v. 47, n. 10, p. 5495-5503, 2013. DOI: 10.1021/es400614y
LI, J.; LOPEZ, B. N.; LIU, L.; ZHAO, N.; YU, K.; ZHENG, L. Regional or global WEEE recycling. Where to go? Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 33, n. 4, p. 923-934, 2013.
OKADA, T.; YONEZAWA, S. Energy-efficient modification of reduction-melting for lead recovery from cathode ray tube funnel glass. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 33, n. 8, p. 1758-1763, 2013. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2013.04.009
OLIVEIRA, L. C.; SOUZA, J. R.; PEREIRA, R. M. PubMed e sua importância na pesquisa biomédica: revisão de literatura. Revista Brasileira de Ciências da Saúde, [S. l.], v. 23, n. 4, p. 45-52, 2019.
SWAIN, B.; LEE, C. G. Commercial indium recovery processes development from various e-(industry) waste through the insightful integration of valorization processes: A perspective. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 87, p. 597-611, 2019. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2019.02.042.
UNIÃO EUROPEIA. Diretiva (UE) 2018/849 do Parlamento Europeu e do Conselho, de 30 de maio de 2018, que altera as Diretivas 2000/53/CE relativa aos veículos em fim de vida, 2006/66/CE relativa às pilhas e acumuladores e respetivos resíduos, e 2012/19/UE relativa aos resíduos de equipamentos elétricos e eletrônicos. Jornal Oficial da União Europeia, [S. l.], 14 jun. 2018.
VAN ECK, N. J.; WALTMAN, L. Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics, [S. l.], v. 84, n. 2, p. 523-538, 2010.
VAN ECK, N. J.; WALTMAN, L. Visualizing bibliometric networks. In: DING, Ying; ROUSSEATU, Ronald; WOLFRAM, Dietmar (Ed.). Measuring scholarly impact. [S. l.]: Springer, 2014. p. 285-320.
XU, Q.; LI, G.; HE, W.; HUANG, J.; SHI, X. Cathode ray tube (CRT) recycling: current capabilities in China and research progress. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 32, n. 8, p. 1566-1574, 2012. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2012.03.009.
WANG, R.; XU, Z. Recycling of non-metallic fractions from waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE): a review. Waste Management, [S. l.], v. 34, n. 8, p. 1455-1469, 2014. DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2014.03.004
YUAN, W.; MENG, W.; LI, J.; ZHANG, C.; SONG, Q.; BAI, J.; WANG, J.; LI, Y. Lead recovery from scrap cathode ray tube funnel glass by hydrothermal sulphidisation. Waste Management Research, [S. l.], v. 33, n. 10, p. 930-936, 2015. DOI: 10.1177/0734242X15597777
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Cezar Di Paula da Silva Pinheiro, Ana Paula da Silva Pinheiro, Raimundo Nonato Nascimento Dias, Flavio Fagundes de Paula

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Os artigos publicados na Revista Multitemas têm acesso aberto (Open Access) sob a licença Creative Commons Attribution, que permite uso, distribuição e reprodução em qualquer meio, sem restrições desde que o trabalho original seja corretamente citado.
Direitos Autorais para artigos publicados nesta revista são do autor, com direitos de primeira publicação para a revista. Em virtude de aparecerem nesta revista de acesso público, os artigos são de uso gratuito, com atribuições próprias, em aplicações educacionais e não-comerciais.