Cold Stored Platelet in Hemorrhagic Shock

The acute management of the severely injured patient with hemorrhage following trauma center arrival has evolved over the last decade.

Current treatment priorities include prevention of coagulopathy through minimization of crystalloid and early blood component resuscitation including plasma and platelets in equal ratios with packed red blood cells. These in-hospital practices, termed damage control resuscitation, are widely used in both battlefield and civilian resuscitation following traumatic injury.

Initiation of the tenets of damage control resuscitation early, soon after arrival, has the potential to reduce downstream complications attributable to hemorrhage by intervening closer to the time of injury, prior to the development of coagulopathy; irreversible shock; and the ensuing inflammatory response. Other blood constituents have recently been shown to be beneficial when given early. Thawed plasma transfusion has been shown to safely reduce 30-day mortality when infused early, in the prehospital setting, in patients at risk of hemorrhagic shock and this separation of survival occurs within the first 3 hours. Platelet transfusion is associated with improved outcomes in the acutely bleeding patients. Cold Stored Platelets have been reported to reduce blood loss when provided for hemorrhage and are a more effective hemostatic product.

Cold stored platelets are less likely to become bacterial contaminated and were the standard of care platelet product until the 1980s. Despite this history and potential benefits, the risks associated with urgent release cold stored platelets and their respective efficacy and function over time are not known in patients with hemorrhagic shock.

By providing Cold Stored Platelets in an urgent release fashion following injury, a potentially superior hemostatic agent is given early, closer to the time of injury. The current pilot trial was designed to determine the feasibility, efficacy and safety of urgent release cold stored platelets as compared to standard care in injured patients in hemorrhagic shock. There are no high-level data which appropriately characterize the urgent release use of cold stored platelets out to 14 days or their function over that time period as compared to standard room temperature platelets. These results will be able to inform future large randomized clinical trials allowing the most appropriate injured population, inclusion criteria, and primary outcome to be selected and utilized.

Inclusion criteria

Patients with traumatic injury who meet the following criteria:

• Has 2 or more of any of the following:

• Hypotension (systolic blood pressure ≤ 90 mmHg) in the prehospital or emergency department setting
• Penetrating mechanism
• Abdominal or Extended Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) abdominal ultrasound is positive or equivocal or deferred by clinical team due to emergent visit to Interventional Radiology or a need for emergent laparotomy, thoracotomy, or vascular exploration
• Heart rate ≥ 120 in the prehospital or emergency department setting

AND

• Clinical team deems Operating Room (laparotomy, thoracotomy or vascular exploration) or Interventional Radiology for embolization within 60 minutes of arrival to be clinically indicated.

Exclusion criteria

• Wearing "NO CriSP" opt-out bracelet
• Age >90 or <15 years of age
• Isolated fall from standing injury mechanism
• Prisoner
• Pregnant
• Traumatic arrest with >5 minutes of CPR without return of vital signs
• Brain matter exposed or penetrating brain injury (gun shot wound [GSW])
• Isolated drowning or hanging victims
• Isolated burns > estimated 20% total body surface area
• Objection to study voiced by subject or family member in Emergency Department

Inclusion and exclusion criteria will be assessed based on information available at the time of enrollment. If, after subsequent review, it is determined that the subject did not meet inclusion criteria and/or met exclusion criteria, the subject will remain enrolled in the study based on the intent-to-treat principle.

If a verbal report must be used in lieu of physical documentation or directly witnessing inclusion criteria, documentation of the verbal report will serve as the source documentation for determining eligibility.