FRIDAY, Nov. 5, 2004 (HealthDayNews) -- A number of U.S. trauma centers are taking part in a study of an oxygen-carrying blood substitute designed to be used at the scene of accidents or disasters to increase survival of critically injured and bleeding trauma patients.
The study of PolyHeme involves as many as 25 Level I trauma centers, including Loyola University Health System in Illinois.
"If the blood substitute works the way we hope it will, it could be the first major advance since the introduction of saline, or salt water, to replace volume after blood loss, around the time of World War I," principal investigator Dr. Richard L Gamelli, chairman of the department of surgery and a professor of trauma surgery at Loyola, said in a prepared statement.
Currently, trauma patients have to wait until they arrive at a hospital before they can receive a blood transfusion. Saline helps restore blood pressure but doesn't deliver oxygen, a critical nutrient needed to prevent damage in the heart, lungs, liver, brain and kidneys.
"Carrying blood in an ambulance isn't practical because it needs to be refrigerated, has a short shelf life and needs to be typed and cross-matched to the specific patient. In contrast, the blood substitute carries oxygen, has a long shelf life and is compatible with all blood types," Gamelli said.
Having an oxygen-carrying blood substitute available at the scene of injury could improve the chance of survival for trauma patients, he said.
More information
The U.S. National Institute of General Medical Sciences has facts and figures about trauma, shock, burn and injury.
