Blood substitute beneficial for trauma patients:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Northfield Laboratories' oxygen-carrying blood substitute PolyHeme improves survival rates in trauma situations where blood might not be available, the company told the US Health and Human Services Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability. In an assessment of 53 patients, none of whom received blood from a blood bank during the study, 85% survived after infusions of the modified haemoglobin, essentially the same percentage that would have been expected to survive if banked blood had been used, said the Evanston Illinois-based company. PolyHeme is undergoing trials for both trauma and surgery.