Circular Economy in Medical Technology: Which Approach Fits Which Product?

Plastics enable sterile, safe and precise applications in medical technology, yet many products are used only once. This creates a particular challenge for the circular economy: materials should be used for longer and recovered without compromising hygiene or patient safety. Which circular approach is suitable depends heavily on the individual medical device.

Single use in medical technology is not necessarily the result of poor circularity. For syringes, catheters or infusion systems, using a product only once can help prevent contamination and ensure defined hygienic conditions. This means that an approach considered central to greater circularity in many industries becomes a matter of careful consideration in medical technology: extending product use.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 85 percent of all waste generated by healthcare activities is considered non-hazardous, while approximately 15 percent is hazardous, for example due to infectious, chemical or radioactive risks. These figures do not refer specifically to plastic waste, but they make one thing clear: medical waste is not a uniform waste stream.

For the circular economy, the key question is therefore less whether a medical device can remain in circulation and more how: Can it be safely reused or reprocessed? Can the plastic be collected separately and recycled after use? Or do hygiene requirements, material composition and regulatory requirements limit the available options?

Reusable medical devices must be designed to withstand repeated cycles of cleaning, disinfection and, depending on the application, sterilization without compromising their function or safety. Reprocessing also affects their environmental footprint. A systematic review of single-use and reusable medical devices evaluated 59 studies. Of the 47 studies that directly compared the two, 39 found a lower carbon footprint for reusable products. At the same time, reprocessing proved to be an important source of emissions. The scale of the benefit therefore also depends on the product, its use, and how cleaning and sterilization are organized.

The situation is different for products designated by the manufacturer as single use. Their reprocessing is not generally permitted throughout the EU. The Medical Device Regulation (MDR) links reprocessing to the national law of the respective Member State and sets requirements for safety and performance. Technical reusability alone is therefore not sufficient for a product to be used again.

If further use is not possible or intended, circularity can instead focus on the material level. Used medical devices must first be collected separately and suitable plastic streams separated from other waste. Products that do not pose an increased risk of infection after use and whose materials can be recovered with reasonable effort are particularly relevant.

In practice, different types of plastic, composite materials and additional components such as metals can make recovery more difficult. If products that are technically recyclable are disposed of together with other medical waste, their materials can often no longer be recovered effectively.

Recovered plastic does not necessarily have to be used in another medical device. Medical applications are subject to stringent requirements for material quality, safety and traceability. Using the material in another suitable application can nevertheless replace virgin raw materials and give it another life cycle.

Circularity cannot be implemented effectively for every medical device. Reuse may be ruled out for safety reasons, while material recycling may be technically possible but require disproportionate effort. The quality of the recovered material also plays a role. In some cases, there is therefore currently no suitable route for further use.

Reuse, reprocessing and recycling provide different pathways for individual medical devices. However, a circular economy only emerges when these options are considered across the entire life cycle. A systematic literature review on healthcare plastics concludes that recycling alone is not enough. Product design and separate collection are just as relevant as economic and regulatory conditions.

A further review describes current approaches as still being strongly shaped by reactive “post-waste” thinking. Attention is often focused on a product only once it has already become waste. In medical technology, the decisive step comes earlier: the realistic options available after use need to be considered during product development and use. Circularity thus shifts from being a downstream waste-management issue to a task that spans the entire product life cycle.