Of the various electrical, mechanical, and chemical methods used in neurosurgical hemostasis, the chemical methods are the least well understood. In this review, data concerning seven modern chemical hemostatic agents are presented and special emphasis is placed on their neurosurgical applications. Overall, the general lack of fundamental knowledge concerning these agents at both the scientific and the clinical level was revealed by a relatively small number of publications over the past 4 decades. Several conclusions have been formulated to assist the neurosurgeon in the proper selection and use of these chemical agents. It is our belief that the use of chemical hemostatics in neurosurgery should be based on a thorough knowledge of their mechanism of action and should be supported by continuing laboratory and clinical research.