• Anthony E Pusateri, Elon Glassberg, and Richard B Weiskopf.
• U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research, Ft. Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas.
• Shock. 2019 Oct 1; 52 (1S Suppl 1): 55-59.

AbstractApproximately 10 years ago, the development of hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) was largely stalled after two large phase 3 clinical trials failed to achieve licensure primarily because the safety profile was viewed as unsatisfactory when HBOCs were compared with red cells. Concerns were also raised that HBOCs, as a class, had inherent toxicities. Since then, clinical experience with HBOCs in expanded access programs and under licensure in South Africa has demonstrated that HBOCs can be used safely and effectively. In recent years, clinical studies have demonstrated that prehospital blood transfusion improves survival in severely injured patients with hemorrhage, especially when transport times are longer than 20 to 30 min. Yet, logistical constraints still limit use of blood products in the prehospital setting. As the urgent need for oxygen-carrying capacity for trauma patients for whom red cells are not available is becoming much more apparent, it is imperative that we reexamine the possibility of using HBOCs when red blood cell transfusion is not an option.

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