Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is produced by allowing a patient to breathe very high concentrations of oxygen while placing them in a chamber and increasing the pressure around them. By increasing the pressure around a patient while they breathe oxygen, we can increase the amount of oxygen in the blood by as much as 15 times normal levels. The increased pressure condenses the oxygen molecules making more molecules available for the blood to pick up in the lung.

The goal is to increase the amount of oxygen delivered to the diseased tissue to help it to heal. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may be used alone or in conjunction with conventional therapies. The patient is placed in a chamber of suitable size and the pressure surrounding the patient is increased by allowing oxygen to flow into the chamber.

Oxygen should be considered a drug and just as any other drug we might administer, it has various doses, frequencies of administration and duration of therapy. These depend on what disease is being treated. For example, a protocol might call for a patient to receive 2 atmospheres of pressure (like diving to 33 ft. in the ocean) for 1 hr. every other day for 7-10 treatments. Different diseases or problems require different doses, frequencies of treatment, and duration of treatment just like the use any conventional drugs.

There are many indications for this therapy. In most diseases, blood flow to the diseased tissue is compromised which in turn decreases the amount of oxygen available for tissue healing. Hyperbaric therapy is able to increase tissue oxygen levels in diseased tissue which improves and speeds healing, improves the body’s ability to fight infections, and reduces inflammation and swelling. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is both a primary treatment and a complementary therapy. Consequently, hyperbaric oxygen therapy may be used alone or in conjunction with conventional therapies.

There are many indications for this therapy. In general, any condition or disease in which the circulation to the diseased tissue has been compromised will benefit from this therapy. Hyperbaric therapy is a primary treatment for some diseases including severe smoke inhalation and burns, Clostridial and other anaerobic infections, and compromised wounds. Hyperbaric therapy is potentially beneficial in other diseases: