Quick CLot Combat Gauze Fails Trial

[Lewitt]

In April I conducted a live and unrehearsed evaluation of all the current formulations of Celox and Quick Clot. This evaluation was performed on swine tissue which has been shot with multiple pistol and rifle calibers. Fresh blood was then pumped into the wounds to simulate high pressure bleeding.

In this clip Quick Clot Combat Gauze was applied to a large irregular wound channel. Please watch the demo and decide for yourselves. This information is critical for anyone trying to stock their own IFAK or BOK so please share it!

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Tactical-Development-Group/161020453920151


Happy 4th of July, Gentlemen!

Bill Lewitt
Paramedic, RN
Lead Medical Instructor
Tactical Development Group

www.WayoftheGun.com

 

[xtry51]

So let me get this straight. You pumped blood at a higher pressure than normal into a small section of meat with no backfeed loop for the blood to find other outlets.

That in no way simulates a real body wound where direct pressure redirects the flow of blood to other vessels (parts of the body), making that test completely meaningless. There is a reason real tests are done on live animals.

 

[Lewitt]

So let me get this straight. You pumped blood at a higher pressure than normal into a small section of meat with no backfeed loop for the blood to find other outlets.

That in no way simulates a real body wound where direct pressure redirects the flow of blood to other vessels (parts of the body), making that test completely meaningless. There is a reason real tests are done on live animals.

Sir,

Do with the information what you like, but the Celox seemed to perform fine.....

Lewitt

 

[Lewitt]

Also, please understand when I say this I'm not being argumentative - Reasonable people can disagree without being disagreeable.

No one does the live trials that you're talking about in this country any more. The FDA regulations on live animal trials are so expensive to follow that most major universities and medical schools have switched over to fully automated simulators that cost upwards of 100k plus the staff trained to run them.

Second, the 2 live trial videos that most people have seen (the old one shot by the Navy of Quick Clot and the more recent Celox demo) were conducted on anesthesized pigs on ventilators. Because of sedation the pigs vital signs DO NOT CHANGE during the procedure. Their heart rate and blood pressures stay normal. In combat conditions I would venture to say that a trauma victims blood pressure and heart rate are not normal.

Third, when you say "feedback loop" I assume you mean collateral circulation. This means we have more than one vein or artery feeding a single part of the body. In the live swine model (which you say is the gold standard) they cut the femoral artery. There is no secondary tract to the femoral artery. That's all you get. Once it's severed (especially at the groin) the pressure at the bleed site is almost identical to the pressure coming off your heart.

I don't sell anything. I have no stake in QC or Celox. My only goal is to get objective information out to the end user so you guys can make your own INFORMED choices.

Enjoy your holiday gentlemen. I'm heading in for another holiday weekend in the ER.

Bill Lewitt
Paramedic, RN
Lead Medical Instructor
Tactical Development Group

 

[xtry51]

Sorry, I was coming across as a dick, which is not unusual for me

Even cutting the femoral artery does not make the body a single loop system. You still have nearly a dozen other large branches to divert to at that point. I'm simply saying your setup does not allow for diversion or recirculation of blood, it's an all or nothing approach. I use the hose and sprinkler approach I brought up in PM. The body, even in a severed artery state is more like a sprinkler than a hose. You can easily (and I use that word rather liberally here) cut off flow to one artery, or hole in the sprinkler, than you can block the whole hose because there are other paths of lesser resistance for the blood to go.

I agree that the celox performs better, but don't agree, based on only that test, that Quick Clot is not an adequate solution to real life encounters.

Also, I'm not just armchair quarterbacking. I've been an EMT for 10 years, though I realize that's less experience than you working directly in the ER.

Kevin Rukstela
Resident Jerk