The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a novel treatment that is designed to stop severe bleeding in a matter of seconds.
TRAUMAGEL — made by Cresilon Inc., a Brooklyn-based biotechnology company — is a plant-based hydrogel that comes in a pre-filled syringe, according to a press release.
First responders, paramedics and combat medics can use the gel to rapidly stop severe blood loss from wounds due to gunshots, stabbings or other traumatic events.
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Joe Landolina, Cresilon’s CEO and co-founder, invented the gel in his dorm room when he was a 17-year-old chemical and bioengineering student at NYU.
There are currently many gauzes, powders and sponges used to stop bleeding, but they have limitations, according to Landolina.
"Compared to TRAUMAGEL, these products are difficult to apply into wounds, as they must be packed physically into a bullet wound by a first responder, which is painful and highly risky," he told Fox News Digital via email.
TRAUMAGEL, which is "the color and texture of hummus," works by instantly creating a mechanical barrier against bleeding at the site of the wound, Landolina said.
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"That barrier then allows the patient to quickly produce their own natural clot that doesn’t become incorporated with TRAUMAGEL, allowing TRAUMAGEL to then be removed without disturbing the clot."
The gel is supposed to be removed within 24 hours.
Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News and clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center, confirmed that this is the first gel-based hemostatic agent to be cleared for use in the U.S. to stop bleeding.
The product appears to be a "major step forward" in managing acute bleeding in the field — "even including head trauma and military uses [in combat], as well as gunshot and knifing wounds outside of combat," Siegel told Fox News Digital.
"The advantages are that it is plant-based and works very rapidly without a lot of protocol or preparation," he said.
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"Also, it can be squirted from a syringe to get it into ‘nooks and crannies,’ and doesn't require external pressure."
Severe blood loss in traumatic wounds can kill in a matter of minutes, and is responsible for more than 35% of all pre-hospital deaths, studies show.
Up to 60% of hemorrhage deaths occur within the first three hours of injury.
The product is slated to launch in the U.S. in late 2024, according to the company.
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Cresilon will target the U.S. military, trauma hospitals, emergency medical services (EMS) agencies and medical professionals who treat traumatic wounds, the company states.
