A general generic version of drug has been saving lives of American soldiers. The generic drug is being given to severely injured soldiers to slow excess bleeding.
The drug is tranexamic acid. Cost of tranexamic acid is very low so much so that physicians were wary to use it. That why this drug took long time to fully recognized it’s potential in emergency units. Every year four thousand american people get into emergency care unit for the treatment of hemorrhage caused by various reasons such as vehicle accidents, shoot out and stabbings.
Because of its extremely low cost, manufacturer companies could not afford to market or advertise the drug.
Usefulness of the drug has sparked discussions amongst experts of many hospitals across the US on whether the drug should be included in pharmacies. The drug is OTC in UK to stop excess bleeding during menstrual cycle. A study, on more than twenty thousand patients who suffered bleeding for various reason, proved the drug as life saving drug treatment when it is about stop bleeding. Taking result of the study into consideration, UK and US military started to use the drug for their soldiers.
Along with military the drug is now being used in ambulances in UK. Around 400,000 patients die every year because of unstoppable bleeding. A research on usefulness of drug demonstrated that tranexamic acid can save 128,000 patients a year. The research has been available on March 1 publication of BMC Emergency Medicine.
Experts held pharmaceutical companies responsible as the companies did not marketed the drug despite its great potential in hemorrhage treatment.
Pfizer, a pharmaceutical giant, funded a study trial named as Crash-2. The trial was conducted by Dr. Ian Roberts in 2010. Dr Roberts is acting as director of clinical trial department of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
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