Finite element computational modeling of the resistive heating during the maximum exposure (150 V, 100 μs/phase,
10 Hz, 30 s) demonstrated that the peak temperature rise at the end of
the treatment was between 2.3°C with full blood vessel perfusion and
2.9°C, with no blood perfusion (see Supplementary Figure 1b).
This estimate indicates that even the most intense regime of hemorrhage
control did not involve thermal damage to the treated vessels. Modeling
of resistive heating for reversible constriction (80 V, 1 μs/phase,
10 Hz, 2 min) showed a temperature rise of less than 0.02°C, indicating
that the mechanism of vasoconstriction is not thermal.
Histological findings
Histological sections of the treated and non-treated femoral arteries are shown in Figure 8. Figure 8a shows a cross-section of a femoral artery following complete vessel dissection and 30 seconds-long treatment with 100 μs/phase
pulses of 150 V at a repetition rate of 10 Hz. For comparison, an
untreated control tissue from the other leg is shown in Figure 8b.
Treatment caused complete occlusion of the vessel and cessation of
bleeding within a few seconds. Upon euthanasia and tissue fixation the
vessels dilated somewhat, compared to the most constricted state because
of smooth muscle relaxation. In the middle of a circular lumen one can
see an acute blood clot attached to the endothelium (solid arrow). The
width of the blood clot illustrates the size of the blood vessel in its
constricted state, prior to excision and fixation. The smooth muscle
contraction is evident by circular appearance of the vessel and by dense
folding of the internal elastic lamina (dashed arrow). The endothelium,
media and adventitia of the blood vessel appear unaffected by the
treatment.
Discussion
Microsecond
electrical pulses can induce vasoconstriction within a few seconds, in
both arteries and veins. Upon termination of stimulation, the blood
vessels dilate back to their original size within a few minutes. This
reversible vasoconstriction can be repeated, and it does not seem to
involve tissue damage. Upon stronger stimulation, a permanent blood clot
may form, completely blocking the lumen of the blood vessel. Both the
reversible vasoconstriction and irreversible clotting offer a powerful
approach to hemorrhage control in non-compressible wounds. The extent of
perfusion can be controlled by varying the amplitude, pulse duration,
and pulse repetition rate. Since the flow rate in a cylindrical pipe is
proportional to the fourth power of the diameter (Poiseuille's equation20), even small constriction of the blood vessel should significantly reduce the flow.
Electrically
induced vasoconstriction could result from several effects: stimulation
of the sympathetic innervations of the blood vessels and direct
stimulation of the smooth muscle21, 22, 23, 24, 25.
We couldn't find reports of a similarly profound pharmacological
vasoconstriction - down to almost complete obstruction. This suggests
that electrical pulses can induce much stronger contraction of the
smooth muscles than pharmacological agents. Interestingly, similar
extent of electrically-induced vasoconstriction has been observed
in-vitro, with modulation by pulse amplitude, duration and repetition
rate23, 24, 25. Formation of the blood clot may result from localized vascular stasis or a response to injury of the vascular endothelium18, 26, 27.
Histological
evaluation of the tissue up to 3.5 hours after vasoconstriction
revealed no obvious damage. However, a longer follow-up is required to
detect potential development of the inflammatory tissue response,
apoptotic effects or other long-term manifestations of mild tissue
damage. Long term injury to smooth muscle in the blood vessels was
observed one week following exposure to high electric field in rats28, 29. Injury to vascular endothelium can further enhance the blood clotting and thrombosis30.
Conventional thermal coagulation of blood vessels typically requires tens of Watts of power delivered by electrocautery31 or RF coagulator31, 32, 33.
Such techniques cause significant tissue injury and are not efficient
in coagulation of large vessels. Typically, large vessels require
mechanical ligation under direct visualization. Newer techniques such as
Ligasure can thermally seal larger arteries, but they require bulky
power supply, good visualization of the vessel and access to the vessel
from all sides for accurate positioning of the surgical probe, all of
which prevent the use of this technology in the field33.
In contrast, the low-power (few mW) electrical vasoconstriction helps
reducing blood flow without thermal damage to the tissue, and may not
require good visualization of the injured vessel for positioning of the
tool. Since very low power is required for such stimulation, a small
disposable device could be placed in the wounded area to reduce or stop
local bleeding. Pulsatile muscle contraction in response to electrical
stimulation could be minimized by using higher repetition rates.
In
conclusion, electrical stimulation of vasculature by microsecond pulses
can be used to control blood perfusion and reduce hemorrhage in
non-compressible wounds. Temporary decrease in blood perfusion can be
achieved in seconds using the reversible vasoconstriction regime, with
vessels dilating back to their original size within minutes after
termination of stimulation. This modality could be used for non-damaging
hemorrhage control in surgery and during trauma care. Permanent
blockage of bleeding is achieved upon vasoconstriction followed by
initiation of clotting. For practical use in trauma care and for
treatment of the battlefield injuries, a miniature device should be
developed capable of delivering pulsed stimulation prior to arrival of
the patient to the hospital. Due to low energy requirements a disposable
battery-powered device can be just a few millimeters in width, so it
can be inserted into the wound to stop local bleeding. Alternatively, a
stimulator may remain outside the body, and electric current can be
delivered to the area of interest via percutaneous penetrating needle
electrodes, similarly to tumor ablation by electroporation [e.g.34].