Comparative Study of Temperatures Used in Silicone Impregnation of Porcine Hearts Plastination

Abstract

Forced impregnation process is normally performed under vacuum at freezing temperature which requires expensive plastination apparatus. To reduce the cost in the plastination process, forced impregnation of porcine hearts under two different environments, which are at the freezing temperature (-20oC) and at room temperature (22-25oC), was compared. Twelve porcine hearts were collected from a slaughter house, and divided into the groups, six in each, and subjected to be plastinated by S10 standard technique at the two temperatures. Although the forced impregnation at room temperature, also the curing process, was more time-consuming, all hearts from both groups produced satisfying plastinated specimens. The gross structures, rigidity and color of the plastinated hearts from both groups were examined. The surface and internal structures of the heart, after dissection, were kept in shape and no differences were observed between the two groups. The color of the external and internal structures was brown. Moreover, no significant color difference was detected between the specimens although the natural color of the heart
before plastination is more grayish. All plastinated hearts were rigid and slightly flexible. In conclusion, although forced implegnation at room temperature required more processing time than forced impregnation at freezing temperature, both could still produce an equal quality at plastinated heart specimens.