Bioinspired Hemostatic Strategy via Pulse Ejections for Severe Bleeding Wounds.

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Regenerative Medicine
• Trauma Care

Background:

• Achieving efficient hemostasis in prehospital trauma settings with massive bleeding is a significant clinical challenge.
• Current hemostatic strategies require improvement for treating extensive traumatic wounds effectively.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel shape-memory aerogel inspired by bombardier beetles for enhanced hemostasis.
• To investigate the aerogel's ability to provide physical blockage and active drug delivery for severe bleeding control.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a shape-memory aerogel with aligned microchannels containing thrombin-carrying microparticles.
• Evaluation of the aerogel's expansion, CO2 microbubble generation, and drug ejection dynamics using theoretical modeling and experimental methods.
• Assessment of hemostatic performance, degradability, and biocompatibility in a swine model of severe hemorrhage.

Main Results:

• The bioinspired aerogel demonstrated rapid expansion upon blood contact, creating a physical seal.
• Spontaneous CO2 microbubble generation provided propulsion for accelerated and deeper drug diffusion through microchannels.
• Remarkable hemostatic efficacy was observed in severely bleeding wounds, alongside good degradability and biocompatibility.

Conclusions:

• The proposed shape-memory aerogel offers a promising dual-action hemostatic strategy combining physical sealing and active drug delivery.
• This bioinspired material exhibits significant potential for clinical translation in managing life-threatening hemorrhage in emergency settings.