The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use XSTAT 30 for treatment of civilian gunshot victims. XSTAT 30 is a battlefield device that stops wound bleeding in 20 seconds.

Manufactured by Oregon-base medical device company RevMedx, XSTAT 30 is an expandable, multi-sponge wound dressing used to control severe bleeding in areas where a tourniquet cannot be placed, such as the armpit or groin. The device has been used on the battlefield for military wound dressing for the past year-and-a-half and has now been approved by the regulatory body for civilian use as well.

“When a product is developed for use in the battlefield, it is generally intended to work in a worst-case scenario where advanced care might not be immediately available,” said William Maisel of the FDA, in a press release. “It is exciting to see this technology transition to help civilian first responders control some severe, life-threatening bleeding while on the trauma scene.”

XSTAT 30 comprise of a modified syringe. When inserted into the wound, the syringe releases small, rapidly-exchanging sponges coated in a hemostatic agent, reports Medical Daily. In less than 20 seconds, the released sponges expand, apply pressure and stop bleeding.

The FDA approval means that XSTAT 30 can be used to treat patients with non-compressible junctional wounds and those at high risk of haemorrhagic shock due to life-threatening bleeding. XSTAT 30 is not recommended to be used in certain parts of the body, including the pelvis, abdomen and chest.

The FDA states that around 30 to 40 percent of civilian deaths by traumatic injury are the result of haemorrhaging. Of those, 33 to 56 percent of the patients die before reaching the hospitals. In such a scenario, XSTAT 30 approval for civilian use could help save lives in a timely manner.

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