Objectives: Dental amalgam, containing approximately 50% mercury, is removed during treatmentand released into the environment via medical waste incineration or sewage. This study estimatedthe annual mercury emission from amalgam removal in South Kore...
Objectives: Dental amalgam, containing approximately 50% mercury, is removed during treatmentand released into the environment via medical waste incineration or sewage. This study estimatedthe annual mercury emission from amalgam removal in South Korea.
Methods: Data on simple restoration removal (2014-2018) were obtained from a dental hospital’sinsurance claims and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA). Amalgam removal rates were calculated and applied to national data. The average amalgam weight was 0.2 g(50% mercury).
Results: Over 5 years, 4,668,490 amalgam restorations were removed. The estimated mercuryemission was 466.84 kg total (mean 93.4±11.0 kg/year; 95% CI, 372.2–536.8 kg).
Conclusions: Approximately 93.4 kg of mercury is annually released from amalgam removal, equivalent to discarding 9-18 million mercury-containing fluorescent lamps. Despite declining amalgamuse, systematic separation and disposal guidelines are urgently needed.