A New Gauze that Stops Bleeding in Minutes

August 2, 2016

by: Abigail Klein Leichman, Israel21c

The cloud of war constantly hanging over Israel has one shiny silver lining: groundbreaking advances in wound care developed for the battlefield and then shared with the rest of humanity. Now another novel product has been designed originally with soldiers in mind but with a much broader potential: WoundClot gauze, a flexible and easy-to-handle material made of highly absorbent regenerated cellulose (plant cells).

WoundClot absorbs about 2,500% of its own weight in fluids and forms a coagulating gel membrane with platelets from the blood on the open wound. By absorbing blood and enhancing the natural clotting process, this unique gauze stops hemorrhaging within minutes and naturally dissolves—no need for painful removal—within 24 hours.

WoundClot has an obvious place in battle settings because uncontrolled bleeding is the main cause of death in conflict zones. However, the product also provides a widely applicable solution when compression is not effective or even counterproductive in the case of stab wounds and certain other kinds of trauma.

The technology was developed at Ben-Gurion University by nanomaterials chemist Shani Eliyahu-Gross, and commercialized by Core Scientific Creations, founded in 2012 in Kfar Saba.

“What is unique about WoundClot is its bio-absorbability and its ability to withhold severe bleeding,” explains Core Scientific Creations CEO Yuval Yaskil. “We managed to create a ‘DNA clock’ that breaks down the product when we want it to and not because of saturation. Also, it is the only product of its kind we know of in the world today that doesn’t use compression.”

Click here to continue reading the article.

Source: Excerpt of article reprinted with permission, Israel21c,www.Israel21c.org

Photo Credit: YuvalMarom/IDF Spokesperson's Unit