Development of a hemostatic material suitable for fatal bleeding in war trauma and injuries

Traumas and injuries nowadays in modern wars are full of diversity, severity and complexity. The traumatic hemorrhage has become an important cause of disability and death during the war and the peaceful time. Rapid hemostasis treatment is one of the key measures to save the lives of the wounded in the 6 rescue techniques. Inorganic materials like zeolite could produce secondary damage caused by high temperature. Chitosan hemostatic powder has poor hemostatic effect in arteriovenous hemorrhage. In order to solve the problems of hemostasis treatment, Prof. Chai Jiake, the director of Burn Institute, Fourth Medical Center of the PLA General Hospital, cooperated with military-related research institutes to develop a war wound with fast and effective hemostatic new materials, leading the research on the injury mechanism and battlefield treatment technology of ammunition firearm injuries. The structure, physical and chemical properties, biocompatibility and in vitro coagulation experiments were evaluated. The product has a sponge interpenetrating channel structure, and successfully grafts sodium polyacrylate onto chitosan, which has strong local coagulation ability and water absorption capacity, no cytotoxicity and sensitization. The material was tested on 65 kg pigs to cover the femoral artery, penetration wounds, and the bleeding of the limb of the explosive wounds. The wounds with the materials were all pressed for 2-3 minutes, with no secondary bleeding observed for over 10 minutes. The hemostatic effect was remarkable. The materials, which have passed product performance and biological registration testing, were proved to be suitable for the self-rescue and mutual rescue of the wounded, saving lives at the first time, winning precious time for follow-up treatments. The hemostatic material could significantly reduce the casualties and disability rates, improving the treatment standards and abilities of bleeding. Key words: Swine; Wounds and injuries; Hemorrhage; Hemostasis