Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments Reviews

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is an important adjunct in the treatment of non-healing wounds.  An established technology, Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy has been shown to help in treating:

* Refractory Osteomyelitis
* Crush Injuries
* Radiation Tissue Damage
* Acute Traumatic Ischemia
* Comprised Skin Grafts, Flaps and Replants
* Necrotizing Soft Tissue Infections
* Diabetic Ulcer of the Lower Extremity

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy involves the systemic delivery of oxygen to patients placed in a chamber at two to three times atmospheric pressure while breathing 100 percent oxygen for periods of time between 90 to 120 minutes.

The effects of increased oxygen tension include:

* Vasoconstriction and the reduction of edema in the area of trauma for crush injuries. Tissue oxygen levels may be 10 to 20 times that achieved by normobaric oxygen breathing.
* Increase in oxygen diffusion distance from functioning capillaries in the hypoperfused wound. Oxygen is necessary for the functioning of fibroblasts, osteoclasts, and granulocytes in wound healing. Also, oxygen is necessary for healing skin grafts, selected problem wounds and compromised flaps.
* Stimulation of neovascularization in ischemic tissues (radiation necrosis, small vessel disease in diabetes, flap, and graft failure).
* Support of leukocytic oxidative bacterial kills as an adjunct to antibiotics and good wound care.

This article is an overview of Lyme disease and hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy. We acknowledge that the medical areas we explore can be complex and that any attempt to define and explain them in a way that is not overly technical can be incomplete and/or inadvertently confusing. We have attempted to be both clear and exact. Mitchell L. Hoggard is a pharmacist. He is also President and founder of the Chico Hyperbaric Center.

All three of his children have received HBO therapy for Lyme disease. Mitchell Hoggard’s son Ted was 14 years old when he took part in William Fife’s HBO research study on Lyme disease (more on the study later). L. James Johnson, formerly a broadcast journalist, is now a marketing consultant. He has received extensive HBO therapy for Lyme disease.

We have written this article to focus attention on what medical science knows and what it does not know about Lyme disease and HBO therapy. A lack of clarity in the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease has impacted both of our lives and the lives of our families. Also, this article was written to be supportive to a patient’s relationship with their physician—not to take the place of that relationship.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) has a long history. The first chamber used to treat patients was constructed in 1662 by Henshaw. And yes, that date is correct, which makes hyperbaric therapy almost 350 years old. Needless to say, there have been a large number of studies done, and its effectiveness has been well established.

Cincinnati Hyperbaric uses state of the art equipment manufactured by HyperTec. This is a physician owned, operated, and staffed facility. Dr. Cole works with each person to help maximize the benefits from their treatments at our center. Your comfort and well-being are our prime concern.