A number of crystalloid and colloid preparations have been developed, most of these are used as volume expanders acting as plasma substitutes. The preparations which have been developed include gelatin, albumin, hydroxyethyl starch, PVP and dextran There are many crystaloid solutions that have been developed, the most common being saline and lactated Ringers solution. Apart from volume expansion, none of these agents provide any biologic activity of plasma proteins or have oxygen carrying capabilities.

Experiments performed by Ponfick and reported in 1875 lead to the first infusion of stroma free hemoglobin to humans in 1916. These early preparations were crude red cell hemolysates which produced a variety of side effects when transfused including; DIC, kidney toxicity and anaplyactic reactions.

It was not until 1967 when Rabiner showed it was the red cell stroma fragments that were toxic that free hemoglobin was again pursued as a blood substitute. Since that time, the search for blood substitutes has led to the investigation of a number of oxygen carrying preparations which include:

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