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Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz are studying whether drones can deliver freeze-dried plasma to critically injured patients when conventional transportation cannot get them to a hospital quickly enough. The research, currently underway in Ukraine, has delivered the blood product to medical teams treating severely injured military personnel.

"When a critically injured patient cannot get to the medical system quickly enough, how can you bring a critical part of that system to the patient? What we're trying to do is see if we can feasibly get blood products to individuals at their point of injury as opposed to waiting to get someone from the front line to a hospital," said Corey Bills, MD, associate professor at the CU Anschutz School of Medicine and a lead researcher on the project.

For decades, emergency medical teams have relied primarily on whole blood and conventional plasma products. Fresh frozen plasma must be kept frozen and thawed before it can be administered, creating logistical challenges outside hospitals.

Freeze-dried plasma offers another possibility. Removing the water allows the product to be stored at room temperature and rapidly prepared for use when needed. The FDA has described dried plasma as potentially useful on battlefields, in remote locations and in other challenging settings.

The current research is taking place in Ukraine, where conventional evacuation can be difficult or delayed. Freeze-dried plasma, donated by global pharmaceutical company Octapharma, is packaged for transport and carried by drone to medical teams operating close to where patients are injured.

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