Optically Anisotropic Topical Hemostatic Coacervate for Naked-Eye Identification of Blood Coagulation

Abstract

Bleeding control is critical for improving survival rates in clinical and military environments. Despite considerable efforts to develop hemostatic agents useful in open surgery, there has been little focus on effective topical hemostatic formulations capable of clearly identifying internal hemostasis and/or rehemorrhage processes without any optical labeling, particularly in minimally invasive endoscopic interventions. Herein, an optically anisotropic topical hemostatic agent for naked-eye clarification of bleeding is reported. Hemostatic agents are formed via nonionic self-coacervation between tannic acid, which is an adhesive polyphenol widely found in plants, and cholesteryl liquid crystals. Applying the hemostatic coacervates onto the injury site enables the visualization of the hemostasis process through immediate formation of a "polyphenol-blood barrier," followed by green-colored light emission of the liquid crystal delaminated from the coacervates. Thus, such optically active hemostatic materials may help manage and prevent complications associated with internal hemorrhage in limited clinical settings.