Study looks at lowering blood flow for injured troops in first hour after injury
It is an interesting concept that could improve survivability on the battle field. I have heard stories of people who survive injuries by willing their body into such a state. It would be much easier with an injection.Researchers at Texas A&M University believe the key to saving lives in battle may lie in the state of metabolic depression known as hibernation.
Under an 18-month, $9.9 million Defense Department grant, the university will examine ways to control blood loss, including stimulation of a “hibernation-like state,” to improve survivability in the first hour after injury.
Dr. Theresa W. Fossum, founder and director of the new Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies, or TIPS, said U.S. troops in remote areas such as Afghanistan often “bleed out” from gunshot or explosives wounds because they don't get blood and fluid replacements in time.
Fossum said a “hydrogen sulfide-type gas” that's been used to induce a dormant state in rodents will be tested on pigs at A&M, and could quickly transfer to the war zone, with approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Researchers hope to develop a way for troops to administer a drug by syringe that would induce a state of reduced metabolic energy, lowering the body's need for blood and oxygen.
Human trials in the United States, where trauma victims have better access to care, would raise ethical questions, Fossum said.
“It may be that this could go directly from animal studies to soldiers in the near term,” she said.
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