History of Hemostasis in Neurosurgery

Danika Paulo; Alexa Semonche; Osamah Choudhry; Fawaz Al-Mufti; Charles J Prestigiacomo; Sudipta Roychowdhury; Anil Nanda; Gaurav Gupta

doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2018.12.015

History of Hemostasis in Neurosurgery

World Neurosurg. 2018 Dec 19:S1878-8750(18)32837-7. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2018.12.015. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Danika Paulo¹, Alexa Semonche¹, Osamah Choudhry², Fawaz Al-Mufti³, Charles J Prestigiacomo⁴, Sudipta Roychowdhury⁵, Anil Nanda⁶, Gaurav Gupta⁷

Affiliations

¹ Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Academic Building Suite 2100, 125 Paterson St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, United States.
² New York University, Department of Neurological Surgery, 550 1st Avenue, Skirball, Suite 8R, New York, NY 10016, United States.
³ University Hospital, Department of Neurology, 90 Bergen Street, Suite 5200, Newark, NJ 07101, United States.
⁴ Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Department of Neurosurgery, Doctor's Office Center 90 Bergen Street, Newark, NJ 07101, United States.
⁵ Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, Department of Radiology, Medical Education Building Suite #04, 1 Robert Wood Johnson Pl, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, United States.
⁶ Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Academic Building Suite 2100, 125 Paterson St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, United States.
⁷ Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Academic Building Suite 2100, 125 Paterson St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, United States. Electronic address: guptaga@rwjms.rutgers.edu.

PMID: 30579020
DOI: 10.1016/j.wneu.2018.12.015

Abstract

Control of bleeding in the confined area of the skull is imperative for successful neurosurgery and the prevention of devastating complications such as postoperative hemorrhage. This paper reviews the historical evolution of methods to achieve successful hemostasis in neurosurgery from the early1800s to today. The major categories of hemostatic agents (mechanical, chemical and thermal) are delineated and discussed in chronological order. The significance of this article is in its detailed history of the kinds of hemostatic methods that have evolved with our accumulating medical and surgical knowledge, which may inform future innovations and improvements.

Keywords: Hemostasis; Historical Vignette; Literature Review; Neurosurgery.

Publication types

Review