[Image from Cleveland Clinic]
8. Vacuum-induced uterine tamponade device for postpartum hemorrhage
Postpartum hemorrhage is a complication of childbirth that is characterized by excessive bleeding after having a baby. It affects from 1-5% of women who give birth.
Mothers who experience postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) may require blood transfusions and drugs that could cause dangerous side effects, long uncomfortable procedures and emergency hysterectomy.
Non-surgical interventions that are directed at the site of the bleeding have typically been limited to balloon devices that expand the uterus and compress the site of bleeding, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“The device is a new concept that was recently tested internationally in a few small centers. It now completed a clinical trial in the U.S. involving 12 centers. It is actually a totally new approach to dealing with postpartum hemorrhage,” Dr. Edward Chien, Cleveland Clinic obstetric and gynecology department chair, said at the virtual event.
The newest advancement is a vacuum-induced uterine tamponade. The method uses negative pressure created inside the uterus to collapse the bleeding cavity, causing the muscle to close off the vessels. It is a minimally invasive tool for clinicians as they treat the complication and provide a low-tech solution that can be translated to developing countries with low resource availability.
“I think this is going take or replace the use of the balloon compression devices for controlled hemorrhage. The recent study that was published showed that it actually had a higher rate of efficacy than the balloon tamponade in general. And it also seemed to work much quicker. Within a few minutes, you got control of hemorrhage, when it was effective,” Chien said.
