Abstract
Summary
Capacity of 3 plasma expanders of different molecular weight to substitute blood plasma was studied. These included dextran (40,000), PVP (28,000) and Graplasmoid (6,200); they were compared with whole blood and with 2 non-colloidal solutions dextrose and saline. Changes in blood pressure and blood volume observed after partial replacement of blood by any of the 3 colloidal solutions were not essentially different from those observed after autotransfusion. Replacement by dextrose or saline solutions, however, resulted in significant changes. The non-colloidal solutions only slightly delayed onset of hemorrhagic shock. The plasma expander with lowest molecular weight was as effective as the 2 high molecular weight compounds. A greater number of animals survived partial or “total” replacement of blood with plasma expanders than survived replacement with dextrose or saline. In percent of survival, no significant differences were observed between the 3 plasma expanders.
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