Sisu to put emergency blood recycling device through trials later this year

Sisu Global Health, which specializes in developing medical devices tailored to meet a specific need in a community, will launch a clinical study later this year for a device that can recycle a patient's blood lost through traumatic internal bleeding.

Dubbed Hemafuse, the device was developed in partnership with the University of Zimbabwe. Hemafuse is a hand-held device that looks like a large syringe that is used to extract blood that has pooled inside a patient as the result of a traumatic event, the Baltimore Business Journal reports. A filter inside the syringe cleans the blood and removes clots before it goes into a unit bag that can be used on the patient.

The device, the company said, is intended for emergency use where a fresh blood supply is not available, and is expected to cost about the same as one unit of blood, saving hospitals and patients money. Surgery typically involves several units of blood and in developing countries in Africa, a patient or the hospital is responsible for covering the cost of blood, which can run between $80 to $200 a unit.

Sisu, which was founded in 2014, has raised $400,000 for the trial from organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID, Saving Lives at Birth and others. Sisu told the newspaper it hopes to raise additional money to fund a broader efficacy trial and bring the device to market by the end of 2016.

While the initial use of the device would be focused on developing regions of the globe, the company said it is exploring other uses for the Hemafuse in rural communities and for the military.

- check out the Baltimore Business Journal story