The technique of heart plastination

Plastinated hearts are natural specimens, preserved in a firm or flexible state, which thus can be grasped in the hand. They are fixed in a dilated state. Their tissue water and lipids are replaced by polymerized synthetic resins or elastomers. The final specimens show doubly injected coronary vessels, opened atria and ventricles, thus exhibiting all finer external and internal details. The procedure described consists of the removal of the heart; intermediate storage facilities; dilatation with water under hydrostatic pressure; color injection of the coronary vessels; fixation; dehydration in acetone under hydrostatic pressure; forced impregnation in a vacuum chamber; and hardening with aftercare. Technical variations and pitfalls are discussed, as well as the required equipment.