A £1.1m trial which could save the lives of car crash victims and others with bleeding injuries has been launched by Aberdeen University.

The treatment involves temporarily stopping the blood flow to the lower part of the body until patients can be taken to an operating theatre is to be used at a number of major trauma centres during the trial.

Patients who have fallen from height will be subject to the procedure, which works by placing a balloon device through the body's main artery in the groin.

Once the balloon is inflated it blocks the artery and ensures blood flow is maintained around the vital organs such as the heart and brain.

The study is being supported by a grant from the National Institute of Health Research health technology assessment board and begins this month.