Without timely medical intervention, injuries from traffic accidents, serious workplace incidents, or weapons can lead to life-threatening hemorrhaging. These fatalities often occur within the first 30 minutes to one hour after the injury. Researchers have now created a new hemostatic bandage with antimicrobial properties to help prevent such bleeding in critical situations.

The spongelike hemostatic bandage, named SilFoam, has been developed by researchers at the University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL, USA) and functions more like a foam than a traditional bandage. SilFoam is a liquid gel made from siloxanes (composed of silicon and oxygen) and is delivered through a specialized two-chamber syringe that quickly expands into a spongy foam when the components mix within the wound in less than a minute. The sponge exerts pressure to control the hemorrhage at the application site while also acting as an antibacterial agent due to the inclusion of silver oxide. For every five milliliters of gel injected, the foam expands to approximately 35 milliliters. The researchers also discovered that their sponge allowed for gentler removal. The bandage’s adhesive properties are optimized to prevent rupturing of smaller blood vessels upon removal, while maintaining sufficient adhesion to muscles, veins, and arteries to prevent blood leakage. The sponge’s porosity and adhesion enhance its ability to expand and seal the wound, enabling the body’s natural clotting mechanisms to take effect.

Researching methods for addressing wounds requires special care to avoid causing harm to test subjects; however, the researchers circumvented this challenge by using a functional anatomic model for testing their methods. They utilized specially designed mannequins that featured realistic blood vessels and wounds to assess their foam, aiming for preliminary results that would justify further testing. The experiments yielded promising outcomes, particularly when comparing SilFoam to five other existing treatment options. The findings from the study, published in the journal Biomaterials Science, indicate that SilFoam offers numerous advantages, including significantly reduced leakage, storage at room temperature instead of requiring refrigeration, lower material costs, and minimal training needed for syringe use.

“If you have something that’s very sticky, like a bandage that you can slap onto your wound, that that will prevent blood from coming out, but if you want to remove that bandage, it can cause tissue damage or pain,” said Pritha Sarkar, a graduate student in the materials science department at UCF, who assisted with the experimentation. “Our polymer system doesn’t stick to your skin, so it’s very easy to remove. We have a dressing that can expand onto your wound and seal it shut, but at the same time, once it’s done its job, you can remove it very easily.

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