As part of a nationwide study, the University Hospital Air Med, LDS Hospital Life Flight, and other local emergency services will begin using PolyHeme, a blood substitute made from the hemoglobin of donated blood, in trauma patients.
The reason for the shift is that PolyHeme can be given to any trauma patient, regardless of blood type.
"PolyHeme is compatible with all patients. It can be transported to the scene and given immediately," said Dr. Stephen E. Morris, director of Trauma at the U Hospital.
Instead of having to first determine a patient's blood type and then supply him or her with compatible blood, medics can immediately provide PolyHeme, saving precious seconds in which oxygen, carried by blood, is deprived from the patient's brain and other vital organs.
"Many patients we've taken into the hospital couldn't survive because they couldn't get oxygen to their organs," said Fire Chief Van Summers of the West Valley City Fire Department.
Unlike human blood, which has to be matched to a specific blood type and must be used within 35-40 days, PolyHeme can be given to anyone and has a shelf life of more than 12 months.
The manufacturers of PolyHeme reported that in previous studies it was proven safe and effective.
"We are now at the point (in the study) that we can include not only researchers as major participants, but the entire population," Morris said.
Because those who will receive Polyheme will usually be unconscious and, as a result, unable to give their consent before receiving the product, the FDA requires that the public be notified before the study begins. Thus, those who have concerns can speak up.
If anyone does not wish to participate in the study, he or she can receive a light blue plastic bracelet from the U Hospital, indicating that they do not want to receive Polyheme.
Over the next year, 36 randomly assigned people will participate in the study. Half of them will be given Polyheme while the other half will be given the usual treatment for extreme bleeding: a saline solution to replace blood volume.
Polyheme will not be given to pregnant women, patients younger than 18, patients with "unsurvivable injuries" and those who object to any kind of blood transfusion.
Mahasan Samhouri, a sophomore pre-medical laboratory science major, worries that Polyheme may affect her job outlook by possibly reducing the need for laboratory services involving human blood.
"It could definitely affect your career choices and how hard it is to find a job in medical lab science," Samhouri said.
But Dr. Robert C. Blaylock, Medical Director for Transfusion Services at ARUP Laboratories, which provide emergency blood supplies to the U Hospital, does not think Polyheme will replace the need for human blood.
"This product, if ultimately approved for use, will have a very limited application. Its intended use will be only in emergency situations to stabilize critically injured patients until blood can be cross matched and transfused. This is not a replacement for blood. It is a supplementary product."
For Summers, using Polyheme in the field takes on a personal meaning.
"I've lost a couple of friends in fires," Summers said.
He recalled an incident in which a falling wall crushed one of his co-workers. Although Summers' friend was awake and talking when he reached the ER, he did not survive his injuries.
Summers hopes that Polyheme will make a difference for trauma victims such as his friend.
For more information about the clinical trial of Polyheme, visit uuhsc.utah.edu/polyheme or call 801-585-0385.
ccallister@chronicle.utah.edu
