Material Made From Crustaceans Could Combat Battlefield Blood Loss

MTorrice writes: A foam composed of a polymer derived from crustacean shells may prevent more soldiers from falling victim to the most prolific killer on the battlefield: blood loss. Pressure is one of the best tools that medics have to fight bleeding, but they can't use it on severe wounds near organs. Here, compression could do more harm than good. First responders have no way to effectively dam blood flows from these non-compressible injuries, which account for the majority of hemorrhagic deaths. The new foam could help stop bleeding in these types of injuries. It relies on chitosan, a biopolymer that comes from processed crustacean shells. By modifying the chitosan, the developers gave the material the ability to anchor blood cells into gel-like networks, essentially forming blood clots. The researchers dispersed the modified chitosan in water to create a fluid they could spray directly onto noncompressible wounds.

Comments

QuikClot and Celox

[turkeydance]

already do this...with the same ingredients. just don't be allergic to shellfish.

Re:QuikClot and Celox

[DamonHD]

Is there a significant antigen left in this foam?

I know people can be allergic to almost anything, but this looks to me like only relatively simple innocuous compounds remain in the foam.

The point being on the battlefield, what proportion of people would be killed by this from anaphylaxis (say) rather than saved by it?

Rgds

Damon

Re:Dupe?

[dotancohen]

I remember seeing something like this as a coating to a wound dressing

Correct. We (Israel) used this to terrific effect in last year's operation in Gaza. It saved lives on both sides.

Re:Dupe?

[kanweg]

Thanks for the reply and the elucidation. I think it is a very good custom that saving a human life takes precedence.

Yes, I had a blunt way of posing the question. I'm not really sorry about that. Being without any factual basis, religion is a personal hobby and should not affect other people's lives. These days, the news is rather filled with items that are at odds with that.

It is rather sad that science is brought to the battle field (both for killing and surviving). If only soldiers limited themselves to taking their holy book with them and praying the enemy to death. There are no theists in foxholes, I guess.

Bert

Re:Dupe?

[dotancohen]

Thanks, Bert. I agree with you on all accounts.

I've been on both ends of the assault rifle, and my children have been through one rocket damaging our home and dozens more landing nearby. The more we "advance" technology the more we enable any particular human to hurt more and more people around them. I long for the day when we forget how to forge rifles and pack blackpowder. Let the warriors (and I say this as a reserve soldier) fight with their fists. There is no way for either side to "leave the civilians out of it" when we are fighting with weapons with a ranges measured in kilometers. If you can't look the other side in the eye, don't pull the trigger / don't throw the punch / don't push the button.

And don't be afraid to call someone a false cleric if they are using holy texts / mythology / out-of-context quotes in order to convince you to hurt somebody.