Finding real-life instances of innovations that seem too good to be true is always a rewarding experience. And search no further, friends, as we now have a real proof of concept for a truly life-saving device. The XSTAT hemostatic device, which seemed to be the stuff of science fiction when it was first introduced last year, has now successfully been used on a soldier to staunch severe bleeding in an “almost immediate” capacity.
The brainchild of RevMedx, Inc., we first told you about the XSTAT hemostatic device last Christmas — it’s designed to stop severe bleeding in a matter of seconds and prevent life-threatening blood loss in areas of the body that can’t easily be treated with a tourniquet — such as the chest or armpit. The device works by way of a series of tiny sponges that are injected into the affected area by way of a syringe-like applicator. Once in place, the sponges expand, exerting hemostatic pressure in order to stop the bleeding.
But until very recently, the device had never truly been used in a real-world, life-threatening situation.
Just a few days ago, XSTAT was applied in the first documented clinical use of the product since its release. As per reports from the U.S. military, a soldier who suffered a gunshot wound to his thigh spent hours with a medical team in efforts “to control residual bleeding from the bone and accessory vessels,” all to no avail. Indeed, the military reports, “Throughout the course of the roughly 7-hour surgery, multiple attempts at using bone wax and cautery on the bleeding sites were unsuccessful and the patient received multiple units of blood and plasma.” It wasn’t until medics decided to use XSTAT that they achieved “nearly immediate hemostasis.”
“The first-in-human experience with XSTAT is the culmination of tremendous effort on the part of both RevMedx and our military collaborators,” said Andrew Barofsky, president and CEO of RevMedx. “We are pleased to see XSTAT play a critical role in saving a patient’s life and hope to see significant advancement toward further adoption of XSTAT as a standard of care for severe hemorrhage in pre-hospital settings.”
