Post by Regolyth on Feb 6, 2014 17:03:04 GMT -5
This is pretty snazzy. I wouldn't mind having one of these (not that I get shot often or anything).
This High Tech Injection Heals Gunshot Wounds in 15 Seconds
How A Simple New Invention Seals A Gunshot Wound In 15 Seconds
This High Tech Injection Heals Gunshot Wounds in 15 Seconds
An Oregon based startup might have revolutionized the way we heal gunshot wounds.
Startup RevMedx, which develops products for military medics and members of the emergency services, has created a device that can heal a gunshot wound in 15 seconds, Popular Science reports. The device is called XStat, and its creators are hoping the FDA will approve it for use by medical professionals.
XStat consists of an applicator filled with dozens of tiny sponges that soak up a ton of blood when injected into an open wound. It’s kind of like a tampon for bullet wounds, we guess. And those pesky little sponges won’t get lodged and lost in your body forever. They’re marked with something called a “radiopaque marker,” which means they’ll show up on an x-ray when the victim reaches the hospital.
Currently, military medics and civilian first responders typically use gauze to heal gunshot wounds—a process that’s apparently painful as hell, and not particularly efficient. “A medic must pack gauze directly into the wound cavity, sometimes as deep as 5 inches into the body, to stop bleeding from an artery,” Popular Science explains. “It’s an agonizing process that doesn’t always work—if bleeding hasn’t stopped after three minutes of applying direct pressure, the medic must pull out all the gauze and start over again.” Nice.
Startup RevMedx, which develops products for military medics and members of the emergency services, has created a device that can heal a gunshot wound in 15 seconds, Popular Science reports. The device is called XStat, and its creators are hoping the FDA will approve it for use by medical professionals.
XStat consists of an applicator filled with dozens of tiny sponges that soak up a ton of blood when injected into an open wound. It’s kind of like a tampon for bullet wounds, we guess. And those pesky little sponges won’t get lodged and lost in your body forever. They’re marked with something called a “radiopaque marker,” which means they’ll show up on an x-ray when the victim reaches the hospital.
Currently, military medics and civilian first responders typically use gauze to heal gunshot wounds—a process that’s apparently painful as hell, and not particularly efficient. “A medic must pack gauze directly into the wound cavity, sometimes as deep as 5 inches into the body, to stop bleeding from an artery,” Popular Science explains. “It’s an agonizing process that doesn’t always work—if bleeding hasn’t stopped after three minutes of applying direct pressure, the medic must pull out all the gauze and start over again.” Nice.
How A Simple New Invention Seals A Gunshot Wound In 15 Seconds
Even with this emergency treatment, many soldiers still bleed to death; hemorrhage is a leading cause of death on the battlefield. "Gauze bandages just don't work for anything serious," says Steinbaugh, who tended to injured soldiers during more than a dozen deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. When Steinbaugh retired in April 2012 after a head injury, he joined an Oregon-based startup called RevMedx, a small group of veterans, scientists, and engineers who were working on a better way to stop bleeding.
The sponges work fast: In just 15 seconds, they expand to fill the entire wound cavity, creating enough pressure to stop heavy bleeding. And because the sponges cling to moist surfaces, they aren’t pushed back out of the body by gushing blood. “By the time you even put a bandage over the wound, the bleeding has already stopped,” Steinbaugh says.
The sponges work fast: In just 15 seconds, they expand to fill the entire wound cavity, creating enough pressure to stop heavy bleeding. And because the sponges cling to moist surfaces, they aren’t pushed back out of the body by gushing blood. “By the time you even put a bandage over the wound, the bleeding has already stopped,” Steinbaugh says.
