Hyperbaric oxygen remedy
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized environment. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a well-established remedy for decompression sickness, a potential risk of scuba diving. Different conditions treated with hyperbaric oxygen remedy include critical infections, bubbles of air in your blood vessels, and wounds that won’t heal as a result of diabetes or radiation injury.
In a hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber, the air pressure is increased two to a few times higher than normal air pressure. Under these conditions, your lungs can gather much more oxygen than could be possible breathing pure oxygen at normal air pressure.
When your blood carries this additional oxygen all through your body, this helps battle micro organism and stimulate the release of drugs called growth factors and stem cells, which promote healing.
Why it’s performed
Your body’s tissues want an adequate supply of oxygen to function. When tissue is injured, it requires even more oxygen to survive. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy increases the amount of oxygen your blood can carry. With repeated scheduled remedies, the temporary further high oxygen levels encourage normal tissue oxygen levels, even after the remedy is completed.
Hyperbaric oxygen remedy is used to treat a number of medical conditions. And medical institutions use it in several ways. Your physician might recommend hyperbaric oxygen remedy when you’ve got one of many following conditions:
Severe anemia
Brain abscess
Bubbles of air in your blood vessels (arterial gas embolism)
Burns
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Crushing injury
Deafness, sudden
Decompression sickness
Gangrene
Infection of skin or bone that causes tissue demise
Nonhealing wounds, resembling a diabetic foot ulcer
Radiation injury
Skin graft or skin flap at risk of tissue dying
Traumatic brain injury
Vision loss, sudden and painless
Risks
Hyperbaric oxygen remedy is mostly a safe procedure. Problems are rare. But this therapy does carry some risk.
Potential risks include:
Center ear accidents, including leaking fluid and eardrum rupture, as a result of adjustments in air pressure
Short-term nearsightedness (myopia) caused by temporary eye lens modifications
Lung collapse caused by air pressure adjustments (barotrauma)
Seizures because of too much oxygen (oxygen toxicity) in your central nervous system
Lowered blood sugar in individuals who have diabetes handled with insulin
In sure circumstances, fire — due to the oxygen-rich atmosphere of the remedy chamber
The way you put together
You will be provided with a hospital-approved gown or scrubs to wear rather than regular clothing throughout the procedure.
In your safety, items reminiscent of lighters or battery-powered devices that generate heat aren’t allowed into the hyperbaric chamber. In addition, it’s possible you’ll must remove hair and skin care products that are petroleum based, as they are a potential fire hazard. Your health care staff will provide instruction on making ready you to undergo hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
Throughout hyperbaric oxygen remedy
Hyperbaric oxygen remedy typically is performed as an outpatient procedure however can be provided while you are hospitalized.
Basically, there are two types of hyperbaric oxygen chambers:
A unit designed for 1 person. In a person (monoplace) unit, you lie down on a table that slides into a transparent plastic chamber.
A room designed to accommodate a number of people. In a multiperson hyperbaric oxygen room — which often looks like a big hospital room — you may sit or lie down. You may receive oxygen by way of a mask over your face or a lightweight, clear hood positioned over your head.
Whether or not you’re in a person or multiperson atmosphere for hyperbaric oxygen therapy, the benefits are the same.
Throughout therapy, the air pressure within the room is about to three times the normal air pressure. The increased air pressure will create a temporary feeling of fullness in your ears — just like what you may feel in an airplane or at a high elevation. You can relieve that feeling by yawning or swallowing.
For many conditions, hyperbaric oxygen therapy lasts approximately hours. Members of your health care team will monitotherwise you and the remedy unit throughout your treatment.
After hyperbaric oxygen remedy
Your therapy team assesses you together with looking in your ears and taking your blood pressure and pulse. If you have diabetes, your blood glucose is checked. As soon as the workforce decides you are ready, you will get dressed and leave.
You might feel somewhat tired or hungry following your treatment. This does not limit regular activities.
Results
To benefit from hyperbaric oxygen remedy, you may likely want more than one session. The number of classes depends upon your medical condition. Some conditions, comparable to carbon monoxide poisoning, may be treated in three visits. Others, equivalent to nonhealing wounds, could require forty therapies or more.