Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments Reviews

ultiple Sclerosis is a disease of the nervous system that results in localised patches of inflammation in the brain and spinal cord which may eventually scar (sclerosis).

In 1983 the New England Journal of Medicine reported a controlled, double-blind study on the effect of hyperbaric oxygenation on the symptoms of multiple sclerosis. It reported scientifically demonstrated benefits but recognised the need for long-term studies.

After a pilot study had confirmed this report, patients and their relatives installed pressure chambers in 56 Centres throughout the UK. Since 1982 over 12,000 UK patients have received HBOT. In most, an initial intensive course has been followed by intermittent maintenance treatment. Well over a million individual sessions have been completed without untoward incident.

It is difficult to assess the effect of any treatment on MS patients because of the unpredictable fluctuation of signs and symptoms. One authority considers that the best experimental design is to observe a large number of patients treated over a period of time. MS National therefore followed the progress of 703 patients who had first received treatment soon after the centres opened.

They were recruited from those attending 28 of the Centres. Details are given in Table 1.

Patients had been told that they had multiple sclerosis by neurologists who had said that there is no effective treatment for their condition. The co-operation of the patient’s family doctor had been obtained before they were accepted for treatment.

During HBO treatments, patients breathed 100% oxygen under pressure in HBO chambers. The initial course of treatment consisted of twenty sessions in 4 weeks. Thereafter, the patients returned for a ‘follow-on’ treatment on a weekly basis, or failing that, as often as they felt the need or found it possible.

First of all, it must be understood that hyperbaric oxygen therapy is not a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. You probably already know there is no cure. The usefulness of hyperbaric therapy is to stabilize the patient’s condition and improve their quality of life. Many people suffering from MS report improvements in their overall symptoms and their functional abilities after hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Patients have reported improvements in their ataxia, numbness in their fingers and hands, balance, visual fields, concentration, pain, weakness, and dizziness. It has been shown that very often, improvement can be achieved in bladder-bowel disorders.

Hyperbaric therapy produces vasoconstriction, which causes the dilated leaky blood vessels in MS to constrict back towards a more normal size. Hyperbaric therapy also reduces the internal swelling, due to fluid gathering, which can lead to nerve cells dying. Drugs can force vasoconstriction, but they typically also reduce the amount of available oxygen tissues receive when blood flow is reduced.