June 17,2008:
Three years ago, the U.S. military
received their first clotting bandage (to stop heavy bleeding). This was amajor medical advance to come out of the war
effort. But, competition being what it is, there are now three such clotting
products, all operating a little differently.
The most popular bandage was the Chitosan Hemostatic Dressing (more commonly called HemCon), which
was made by taking a freeze dried substance, that causes clotting of blood, and
incorporating it into what otherwise looks like a typical battlefield bandage.
But these dressings greatly reduced bleeding (which is the most common cause of
death among wounded American troops.) This device was a major breakthrough in
bandage technology. Soon, troops didn't go out into bandit country without at
least one per man, and more for medical personnel.
Over 95
percent of the time, the HemCon bandages stop bleeding, especially in areas
where a tourniquet could not be applied. Now there are two new products,
WoundStat (a granular substance that is poured into a wound) and QuikClot (a gauze
bandage similar to HemCon, that was actually available in 2003, but had some problems). While medics, and troops, prefer the bandage type
device, there are situations where the fine granular substance (WoundStat) is a
better solution (especially in the hands of a medic). All three are now
available for use.
In the
past, troops would often die from loss of blood before a surgeon could get in
there to stop the bleeding. In the first two years of use, over 250,000 HemCon
bandages were obtained for military needs. This was to make sure everyone in a
combat zone had one at all times. While there are not a lot of casualties in
base areas, the occasional rocket or mortar shell is likely to cause the kinds
of wounds where HemCon can be a lifesaver. So it was a morale boost if everyone
could carry a HemCon around (a small first aid kit is a standard part of combat
equipment).
These
clotting devices are also popular with civilian emergency medical services, and
the manufacturers are still trying to catch up with worldwide demand.