Trauma treatment award

July 28, 2008

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The US Army have won an invention award for trauma treatment steps that has saved lives and is to be transferred to civilian hospitals. Defense Industry Daily reports…

“Damage Control Resuscitation of Severely Injured Soldiers (Army Institute of Surgical Research). This is a new set of treatment steps for the soldiers, who require massive transfusions. Limiting the amount of intravenous saline solution (normally 3x blood volume), and transferring an even mix of plasma and blood (rather than the usual 4 plasma : 1 blood unit ratio) stabilizes the patient’s blood pressure, lowers the likelihood of fatal shock, and minimizes renewed bleeding. Early use of a clotting factor called rFVIIa has also been beneficial, and other blood products, such as platelets and cryoprecipitate are used as needed.

The treatment works especially well for non-compressible injuries – which comprise 70% of lethal combat injuries. The Army says that the technique has reduced the mortality rate for severely injured soldiers in the field from 65% – 17%. Civilian medical centers have taken notice, and are expected to begin using these techniques themselves. Dr. Michael Dubick, senior research pharmacologist for the Army ISR:

“The American Association for Trauma Surgeons calls this one of the biggest improvements to trauma care in the last 10 years… We’ve met with over 26 civilian centers and are working with 16 of them.”

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