Hemoperfusion is a therapeutic method in which a large volume of the patient’s blood is passed over an adsorbent material to remove toxins from the blood. Adsorption is a process where molecules or particles of one substance adhere to the surface of a solid material, which is called an adsorbent. Hemoperfusion is described as an extracorporeal treatment because the blood is pumped through a device outside the patient’s body, and after being purified from removable toxins, it is returned to the patient’s body (1).

The adsorbents used in hemoperfusion are resins and various forms of activated carbon or charcoal. Resin adsorbents are currently used in Europe but are not utilized in the United States.
Since 1999, all hemoperfusion systems manufactured in the United States have used cartridges or columns containing carbon adsorbents. A newer type of cartridge containing an adsorbent polymer has also been undergoing clinical trials in the United States since the summer of 2002 (2-4).

Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is a technique used in cardiac surgery to divert the patient’s heart and lungs from the circulatory system, and it is widely employed in such surgeries.
Despite its numerous benefits, this technology also causes issues, one of which is the increased activity of the inflammatory system. This phenomenon leads to many postoperative complications. Therefore, minimizing the systemic inflammatory response during CPB is crucial for improving surgical outcomes in cardiac patients, and various measures have been undertaken in recent years to address this issue (5).

Currently, numerous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of hemoperfusion during cardiac surgery, claiming that this method can reduce the levels of inflammatory factors such as interleukins and cytokines during and after cardiac surgery, thereby decreasing surgical complications. Additionally, the recent application of this technique in patients taking anticoagulant medications and undergoing emergency surgery has been associated with reduced postoperative bleeding and improved surgical outcomes .

The aim of this paper is to review the benefits of using hemoperfusion in cardiac surgeries and to explore its applications in this field.