Date of Award
5-2024
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
History
Department
History
Major Professor
Allan Millett
Second Advisor
Guenter Bischof
Third Advisor
Mark Kuss
Abstract
Humans have been experimenting with new ways to kill each other for millennia, and for just as long, doctors have been experimenting with methods to improve survivability of those wounded. The 20th century was one of the bloodiest period in human history; war claimed over one hundred million lives. With the scourge of disease more easily managed, the medical communities came to address the one wound that historically cost most lives – bleeding to death. Shock and exsanguination can kill a person within thirty seconds to two minutes, and finding ways to mitigate that outcome has been the subject of study for some time. From rudimentary methods of transfusion in the 17th century to more serious consideration in the 1800s, the slow march to using whole blood was on its way. The newly industrialized nature of warfare forced medical personnel to utilize whatever means they could to save lives. War is the great crucible in which new technologies are forged, and the field of medicine was no different. Over time, the best method found to replace blood volume would be blood itself, pioneered by forward-thinking trauma specialists on the front lines.
Recommended Citation
Sweet, Devin, "The Use of Whole Blood in Increasing the Survivability of Combat Wounded Troops From 1940 to 1953" (2024). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 3137.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/3137
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.