What is an Universal Whole Blood Substitute?
In both military and civilian settings, hemorrhage is the leading cause of survivable, traumatic pre-hospital death.
Whole blood is considered the optimal resuscitation fluid for traumatic hemorrhage in tactical combat casualty care, but the cold-chain requirement causes logistical difficulties for far-forward units.
To address this challenge, the Fieldable Solutions for Hemorrhage with bio-Artificial Resuscitation Products (FSHARP) program will develop a deployable, shelf-stable, universal whole blood substitute as a hemorrhage countermeasure to sustain injured warfighters in austere, pre-hospital settings.
At the end of the program, deliverables will be formulations that recapitulate the most critical functions of whole blood without requirement for cold chain, and are tailorable to different injury profiles requiring specific therapeutic adaptations (e.g., hemorrhage with trauma induced coagulopathy, traumatic brain injury, or other concurrent injury).
FSHARP formulations will be suitable for use in active combat zones, disaster response, and medical settings worldwide.
Battlefield care for warfighters
The goal for Live Chain is to ensure warfighters survive the pre-surgical period despite the increased time between injury and definitive medical care.