Authors:
Guy Malki
;
Ofer Barnea
and
Yossi Mandel
Affiliation:
Faculty of Engineering and Tel Aviv University, Israel
Keyword(s):
Hemorrhage Control, Electrical Pulses, Liver Injury.
Related
Ontology
Subjects/Areas/Topics:
Bio-Electromagnetism
;
Biomedical Engineering
;
Biomedical Instrumentation
;
Biomedical Instruments and Devices
;
Emerging Technologies
;
Telecommunications
;
Wireless and Mobile Technologies
;
Wireless Information Networks and Systems
Abstract:
An internal hemorrhagic shock is one of the leading causes of death in the battlefield and other trauma events. However the application of direct pressure, as in the treatment of an external hemorrhage, is not possible. Most common techniques to achieve vasoconstriction are through heat; yet heating causes irreversible destruction of organ tissues. Therefore, there is a need for a non-thermal based technology for hemorrhage control. The current research describes, for the first, an attempt to reduce the amount of bleeding in animal model liver injuries by using electrical pulses treatment (EPT). In the experiments, which were performed on 28 rats and 14 rabbits, a short (25µs and 50µs) EPT was applied to the treatment groups and the amount of bleeding was compared to the non-treatment (NT) groups. A reduction of 60%, 36% and 44% in blood volume, was found in the 25µs-rats, 50µs-rats and 25µs-rabbits EPT groups, respectively (P<0.001). Also, it was found that the hemorrhage control wa
s not caused by the mechanical pressure applied by the electrodes, and there was no evidence for thermal coagulation. Further research is needed to fully expose the potential of this treatment and the modality for hemorrhage control in civilian and military settings.
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