Most soldiers who die on the battlefield bleed to death, according to the Pentagon, and doctors and scientists are developing a new method to save their lives.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is the research and development office for the U.S. Department of Defense, has made preventing deaths from blood loss a priority. Its Defense Sciences Offices began the Surviving Blood Loss Program (SBL).
According to its website, the program “is developing novel strategies to radically extend the time warfighters can survive critical blood loss on the battlefield before initiation of fluid and blood resuscitation.”
DARPA is also giving money to the private sector, academic, and other nonprofit organizations as well as government labs.
Dr. Hasan Alam, a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) trauma surgeon and director of research for the Division of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, and Surgical Critical Care is working to prolong the time needed to receive care for wounded soldiers on the battlefield.
“When we put these young men and women in harm’s way, we have an obligation to do everything possible to help protect them,” stated Alam in a press release. “In times of war, agencies like the Department of Defense and the Office of Naval Research dramatically increase funding for trauma research. Increased funding leads to advancements in care.”
According to Alam, battlefield deaths from blood loss usually occur within the first six hours of injury. “What happens during these six hours, especially the first 60 minutes—known as the “golden hour”—is pivotal to whether someone survives,” Alam stated.
Texas A&M has also taken part in the research. In 2009, Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies (TIPS) was awarded a $9.9 million grant from DARPA to combat massive blood loss on the battlefield. Their research is also focused on extending the golden hour.
Dr. Theresa Fossum, founder and director of TIPS said in a press release, “Developing an effective, easily administered medication that could extend the ‘golden period’ to five or six hours would save countless lives that would otherwise be lost.”
Much of the research focuses on putting the body in a kind of suspended animation after a soldier has a traumatic injury. In this state, the body’s need for oxygen to sustain vital organs and tissues is reduced. The research has been successfully conducted on animals for years. Now this technology may change the large percentage of deaths occurring on the battlefield as a result of blood loss.
Dr. Brett Giroir, vice chancellor for research for the A&M System said, “Essentially, TIPS is attempting to prove that a ‘hibernation-like’ state can be induced in any mammal, and eventually humans. Early work by TIPS may soon enable human trials of some of these new therapies, which may also be lifesaving for victims of heart attacks and strokes.”
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is the research and development office for the U.S. Department of Defense, has made preventing deaths from blood loss a priority. Its Defense Sciences Offices began the Surviving Blood Loss Program (SBL).
According to its website, the program “is developing novel strategies to radically extend the time warfighters can survive critical blood loss on the battlefield before initiation of fluid and blood resuscitation.”
DARPA is also giving money to the private sector, academic, and other nonprofit organizations as well as government labs.
Dr. Hasan Alam, a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) trauma surgeon and director of research for the Division of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, and Surgical Critical Care is working to prolong the time needed to receive care for wounded soldiers on the battlefield.
“When we put these young men and women in harm’s way, we have an obligation to do everything possible to help protect them,” stated Alam in a press release. “In times of war, agencies like the Department of Defense and the Office of Naval Research dramatically increase funding for trauma research. Increased funding leads to advancements in care.”
According to Alam, battlefield deaths from blood loss usually occur within the first six hours of injury. “What happens during these six hours, especially the first 60 minutes—known as the “golden hour”—is pivotal to whether someone survives,” Alam stated.
Texas A&M has also taken part in the research. In 2009, Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies (TIPS) was awarded a $9.9 million grant from DARPA to combat massive blood loss on the battlefield. Their research is also focused on extending the golden hour.
Dr. Theresa Fossum, founder and director of TIPS said in a press release, “Developing an effective, easily administered medication that could extend the ‘golden period’ to five or six hours would save countless lives that would otherwise be lost.”
Much of the research focuses on putting the body in a kind of suspended animation after a soldier has a traumatic injury. In this state, the body’s need for oxygen to sustain vital organs and tissues is reduced. The research has been successfully conducted on animals for years. Now this technology may change the large percentage of deaths occurring on the battlefield as a result of blood loss.
Dr. Brett Giroir, vice chancellor for research for the A&M System said, “Essentially, TIPS is attempting to prove that a ‘hibernation-like’ state can be induced in any mammal, and eventually humans. Early work by TIPS may soon enable human trials of some of these new therapies, which may also be lifesaving for victims of heart attacks and strokes.”
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