As you read this, someone, somewhere in South Africa could be bleeding from a major arterial wound. By the time you get to the last word, he or she could be dead. O An average 164 people are injured in motor vehicle accidents everyday. An unknown number die in industrial, home, sporting and other traumatic accidents. An effective, easy-to-use means to stop critical bleeding could save thousands of lives.
The HemCon Bandage is a haemostatic dressing that was developed in 2001 in Iraq and Afghanistan. At least one is carried by every American and British soldier in action, where it has already saved more than 150 lives. HemCon has an astonishing +97% “save” rate for severe bleeders. It’s also kept aboard Airforce One and in the White House. The active ingredient in the bandage is chitosan, an extract of arctic-shrimp shells. While blood has a natural negative ionic charge, HemCon Bandages have a positive charge. When pressed onto a severe wound for two minutes, the dressing becomes sticky, adhering to the wound site, shutting off bleeding, and providing an effective anti-bacterial barrier and anti-bacterial agent at the site. The patient can then safely be evacuated for corrective treatment or surgery.
For deep arterial bleeds or large open wounds, a thinner, more pliable, version called ChitoflexTM can be stuffed into the wound channel with the same haemostatic results. As HemCon dressings don’t depend on clotting to stop bleeding, they are effective on haemophiliacs and patients on anti-coagulants such as Warfarin. There have been no known allergic reactions to using the bandage. HemCon products are manufactured in Portland, Oregon in the US, by HemCon Medical Technologies. The product range includes dressings that can be left internally after surgery and a range for burns. The HemCon distributor in Africa, Mkhuseli Trauma Products (Pty) Ltd, now supplies the full HemCon product range. Contact Auriel Mitchley on (011) 889 0796 or e-mail [email protected]. |fw
