Members of the Halt-It research team from left to right: Non-disclosed, Jo Thunder, Elaine Hardy, Ron Carrera, Ylenia Vigo , Lauren Cooper. Other team members not pictured are Aisling Clarkson, Natalie Mitchell, Arlo Whitehouse, Colin Bergin, Emma Reeves, Umesh Salanke, Catrin Dyer, Matthew Boal, Neeraj Bhala, Sofia Taylor & Robbie Beech.
Members of the Halt-It research team from left to right: Non-disclosed, Jo Thunder, Elaine Hardy, Ron Carrera, Ylenia Vigo , Lauren Cooper. Other team members not pictured are Aisling Clarkson, Natalie Mitchell, Arlo Whitehouse, Colin Bergin, Emma Reeves, Umesh Salanke, Catrin Dyer, Matthew Boal, Neeraj Bhala, Sofia Taylor & Robbie Beech.
The HALT-IT trial will determine the effect of early administration of a drug, tranexamic acid (TXA), on mortality, morbidity (re-bleeding, non-fatal thromboembolic events), blood transfusion, surgical intervention and health status in patients with significant GI bleeding.
TXA is widely used to reduce blood transfusions in surgery and reduces the risk of death in bleeding trauma patients. However, there is currently insufficient reliable evidence to recommend the use of tranexamic acid in GI bleeding. The trial will help to determine whether or not the drug should be used.
So far, 3,040 patients have been recruited to the trial from all of the 100+ sites involved and the NIHR SRMRC staff, along with staff from the Emergency Department at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, have played a major role in this, recruiting 102 patients to date (16/07/2015). The team put their success down to having excellent rota coverage, staff training and informal teaching in the Emergency Department to engage as many staff as possible.
For more information about the trial please visit http://haltit.lshtm.ac.uk/
