Stasilon® is a unique medical textile device that stops bleeding and doesn’t stick.  Since these fibers are very thin, Stasilon® is a soft, pliable material that can conform to any bleeding surface.  It has been specifically engineered to stop the bleeding from the wound and can be removed without disturbing the clot.

 

Its properties of clot promotion (hemostasis) and anti-adhesiveness are due to its unique combination of glass and bamboo fibers, as well as the way that they are woven together.

Let’s first discuss the glass.  When you have had blood drawn in the past, you may have noticed that unless an anticoagulant was added, the blood clotted within minutes in the tube.  This happens because glass is a strong activator of both the cells (platelets) and proteins (factors) of the coagulation cascade.  If you were to watch the tube of clotted blood for an hour or two, you would notice that the clot actually pulls away from the wall of the tube, leaving a cylindrical red clot floating in the surrounding yellow serum (serum is blood plasma that remains after the clotting factors have been consumed).  Clot retraction is a manifestation of the pulling power of platelets that are embedded in the clot.  They have similar proteins to muscle cells and behave like micro muscles when they are activated within a clot.

These two events – rapid clotting and minimal adhesion to clot – are characteristic of the effect of glass on blood.

Now let’s discuss the role of bamboo.  Bamboo microfibers are often used in highly wicking sports garments.  In Stasilon®, the bamboo fibers use this wicking action to rapidly draw red blood cells to their surfaces before a full fibrin clot can form.   Their roles in the activation of clotting and the prevention of adhesion are being investigated.

Finally, the way that Stasilon® is woven as a textile has an impact on its effectiveness.  Stasilon®’s weave was designed to maximize the exposure of glass to the wound surface and this can be seen in periodic elevations on the textile surface.   This structure also allows Stasilon® to ride above the clot to some extent, further adding to its anti-adhesiveness.

To be effective, Stasilon® must be applied with pressure to a bleeding site for several minutes.  However, its anti-adhesiveness allows the user to leave it in place once a clot has been formed, serving as a First Day Bandage™ that can be left in place with confidence that unlike gauze, it will not immediately become integrated into the clot.