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Updated: Mar 17, 2026
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Interventional Diagnostic Procedure: A Practical Guide for the Assessment of Coronary Vascular Function
Published on: March 15, 2022
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The Green Cath Lab Challenge: Environmental Sustainability in Interventional Cardiology
Despoina Pappa1, Maria Bourazani2, Maria S Chrysi3
1Nursing, Henry Dunant Hospital Center, Athens, GRC.
Cureus
|March 16, 2026
Summary
Cardiac catheterization labs generate significant waste and emissions. Simple interventions like optimizing procedural packs and waste segregation can reduce environmental impact by 20-30% without compromising patient safety.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Healthcare Sustainability
- Cardiovascular Medicine
Background:
- Healthcare systems contribute significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions.
- Cardiac catheterization laboratories (CCLs) are highly resource-intensive due to single-use materials, high-energy imaging, and strict infection control.
- Mitigating the environmental impact of CCLs is crucial for sustainable cardiovascular care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and analyze quantitative data on waste generation, recycling potential, and carbon emissions in interventional cardiology.
- To identify practical strategies for creating a "green cath lab".
Main Methods:
- A structured literature search was performed across major databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science) from 2015-2025.
- Included studies provided quantitative data on waste output, recycling rates, or carbon footprint in CCLs.
- Only four studies met all inclusion criteria out of 357 retrieved records.
Main Results:
- Diagnostic coronary angiography has an average carbon footprint of 12.5 kg CO₂-equivalent per case, with disposables (40%) and imaging energy (25%) as primary contributors.
- Waste audits revealed 1.5-3 kg of waste per procedure, with 36%-40% being recyclable.
- Optimizing procedural packs, improving HVAC efficiency, and waste segregation reduced waste and emissions by 20%-30%.
Conclusions:
- Interventional cardiology generates substantial and avoidable environmental burdens.
- Targeted, low-cost interventions can significantly decrease waste and carbon footprint in CCLs.
- Findings provide a quantitative basis for sustainability frameworks, carbon auditing, and policy development for net-zero CCLs.
Keywords:
carbon footprintcardiac catheterization laboratorylife cycle analysisrecyclingwaste managementMore Related Videos
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