Controlling bleeding from superficial wounds by the use of topical alpha adrenoreceptor agonists spray A randomized, masked, controlled study

Abstract In an attempt to determine whether alpha adrenergic agonists sprayed directly over the wound are able to reduce a superficial bleeding, phenylephrine (0.25%), oxymetazoline (0.05 and 0.25%) and saline (0.9%) were tested in a rat model. The study was randomized, controlled and quantitative. A total of four incisions were made in each rat, and each solution was sprayed directly on the incision according to a specific protocol. The bleeding times were measured and summed up. Biases were minimized by the fact that each rat received all four solutions, including the control, in all possible combinations. The mean bleeding time after spraying phenylephrine (0.25%) was significantly shorter than the mean bleeding time after spraying saline (1.90±0.14 min versus 4.80±0.43 min, respectively, P P