The Food and Drug Administration has officially approved the use of a life-saving sponge-filled syringe that can plug gunshot wounds in 15 seconds.

Created by RevMedx, the syringe, Xstat, was created over a year and a half ago originally for the military use on the battlefield. Inspired by an emergency tire repair kit, RevMedx created the device to inject non-absorbable, expandable tablet-sized sponges into the wound as a temporary remedy to stop bleeding before taking a patient to a hospital for more lasting care.

“When a product is developed for use in the battlefield, it is generally intended to work in a worst-case scenario where advanced care might not be immediately available,” FDA acting director of the Office of Device Evaluation stated in a press release. “It is exciting to see this technology transition to help civilian first responders control some sever, life-threatening bleeding while on the trauma scene.”

Unfortunately, recent mass shooting have proven parallels between the threat of open fire abroad and home.

According to a study from the University of Alabama, the United States accounts for nearly one-third of the world’s mass shootings. And following the San Bernadino shooting on December 2, NBC News reported that there have been more mass shootings—shooting that involve at least four victims—than days of the year. That reality only becomes more stark when the year has yet to end.

While the syringe has the potential to save the lives of those who are wounded by guns, the quotidian nature of gun violence in the United States demands that gun control measures are passed to ensure lives are saved by foreclosing access to weapons that readily allow them to be taken.

Photo Credit: Revmedx.com