When you get a deep wound on an arm or a leg, you can usually slow down the bleeding with a tourniquet that restricts the blood flow to the injured area, giving you time to seek medical attention without bleeding out. Problem is, the same kind of solution doesn’t exactly apply when the deep wound is in the torso, armpit, or groin, increasing the chances you’ll bleed out before receiving any help. The XStat 30 is a new dressing that can help with that.
Originally used by the military (and recently approved by the FDA for civilians), it consists of a large syringe containing small sponges that you can use to plug up a wound and restrain the bleeding. The military uses it in battlefield situations whenever a soldier has been hit, increasing their chances of making it back to the station to get proper medical care.
To use, simply inject the XStat 30 syringe into the wound, where it will release a sponge in order to properly plug it up. Each sponge will absorb blood upon contact, growing in size to accommodate the vital fluid. Within fifteen seconds of being administered, the sponge should grow large enough that it can completely seal a bullet wound, all while applying the necessary pressure to stop any additional bleeding. Each sponge can absorb up to a pint of blood each (for context, the human body usually has eight pints) and multiple sponges can be used on a patient, although the maximum is three. One syringe can hold up to 92 tablet-sized sterile sponges.
Check out the FDA press release to learn more.