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The Soldier Wound Healing Project was created to develop regenerative therapies for far-forward combat medical care. The Program will identify and develop medical interventions that can be initiated by medics on the battlefield, in Combat Surgical Hospitals, or as soon as possible before or during medical evacuation.

Initiated in 2001, the Soldier Wound Healing (SWH) project was created to develop regenerative therapies for far-forward combat medical care. SWH will identify and develop medical interventions that can be initiated by medics on the battlefield, in Combat Surgical Hospitals, or during medical evacuation.

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Focused on technologies to not only save, but initiate restoration of damaged tissue, SWH researchers are applying expertise in cell-based therapies, medical devices and artificial organs, biomaterials, and tissue engineering for rapid stabilization and treatment.

A team of researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University and the Windber Research Institute are investigating new approaches to treatment of peripheral nerve damage, tissue loss, bone regeneration and hemorrhagic disorders. Key research is focused on:

• Developing an Axonotactic CultiGuide for peripheral nerve regeneration that will have the ability to regenerate nerves over longs gaps.
• Identifying materials that will allow integration of inert devices across the skin that provide access to inside the body.
• Developing a new approach for the prevention of acute lethality due to hemorrhagic shock.
• Improving microcirculation using blood soluble, drag-reducing polymers as a component of a resuscitation fluid.
• Developing a biocompatible foam that can be “sprayed” into a wound, where it will rapidly control bleeding through a combination of simple mechanical blockage and blood dehydration.
• Evaluating the impact of Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC), a trauma-related syndrome, on cell-based therapies.