Hyperbaric oxygen therapy
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing pure oxygen under pressure. The air we normally breathe contains 21% oxygen. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides 100% oxygen within a pressurized chamber.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides distinct therapeutic benefits and is used to treat a variety of illnesses and problem wounds. It often is combined with antibiotics and surgery in treatment plans; it is the primary treatment for some disorders.
How it works
During hyperbaric oxygen therapy you breathe 100% oxygen while you are within the comfortable hyperbaric chamber which is pressurized as prescribed by your physician.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy greatly increases the amount of oxygen delivered to your body tissues by your bloodstream. It is important to understand the benefits of hyperbaric oxygen therapy result from an oxygen-enriched bloodstream, not from direct oxygen contact with wounds.
Benefits
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides many benefits when used to treat certain illnesses and problem wounds. While your physician will discuss the specific reason for your referral to the Wound Care and Hyperbaric Services Unit, generally this therapy provides one or more of the following benefits:
- Enhanced wound healing
- New blood vessel formation (neovascularization)
- Stimulation of white blood cells, the body’s natural defense against infection
- Preservation of damaged tissues by increased delivery of oxygen to that tissue
- Reduction or elimination of the effects of toxic substances such as smoke or carbon monoxide
- Reduction or elimination of gas bubbles (decompression sickness—typically associated with underwater divers)
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