Development of a novel emergency hemostatic kit for severe hemorrhage.

Photocrosslinkable chitosan (Az-CH-LA) contains lactose moieties and photoreactive azide groups, and its viscous solution forms an insoluble hydrogel on exposure to UV irradiation. We previously developed an emergency hemostatic kit using the Az-CH-LA solution, calcium alginate, and a UV irradiation apparatus. However, a suitable UV irradiation apparatus is required to effectively convert the Az-CH-LA solution into a hydrogel, and power supply to use the UV irradiation apparatus may not always be available in a disaster area or battlefield. To address this problem, we produced a portable, battery-powered UV irradiation apparatus constituting a novel hemostatic kit for severe hemorrhage. When the hemostatic kit using the UV irradiation apparatus was examined using a rat model of severe hemorrhage, the survival rate increased up to 73%. Hematological values as markers of hemorrhage did not change significantly over the first 3 days. In this study, we describe the characteristics of a portable UV irradiation apparatus and its use in an emergency hemostatic kit prepared using Az-CH-LA and calcium alginate for severe hemorrhage.