Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized environment.
A hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber is used to deliver the highest possible level of oxygen to all the cells in the body. In the chamber, the air pressure is increased two to three times higher than normal air pressure. Under these conditions, your lungs have access to a greater amount of oxygen than possible at normal air pressure. This extra oxygen helps fight bacteria, while also triggering the release of substances called growth factors and stem cells, which promote healing.
Your body’s tissues need an adequate supply of oxygen to function. When tissue is injured, it requires more oxygen than normal to heal and return to it’s healthy state. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy increases the amount of oxygen your blood can carry to these injured areas.
Saturating the tissue with oxygen over a series of treatments allows new blood vessels to form through re-vascularization. Once new blood vessels have formed, oxygen in the air at normal pressure can reach the damaged tissue enabling long-term and often permanent healing.
Mono-Place Chambers
Mono-place chambers are designed to treat a single patient at a time. Patients breathe pressurized 100 percent oxygen while lying on a stretcher enclosed in a clear plastic tube. US Wound Care and Hyperbaric Centers utilize multi-place chambers to comfortably treat multiple patients at the same time.
Multi-Place Chambers
Multi-place chambers are designed to accommodate up to twelve patients at a time and are spacious enough for standing and stretching. Patients breathe 100 percent oxygen through a dedicated oxygen source. A technician is always in the chamber with you in a multi-place setting. Patients may read books or magazines, watch a movie, or rest comfortably during the treatment session.
How To Prepare
You will receive an approved gown or scrubs to wear during the procedure. For your safety, items such as lighters or battery-powered devices that generate heat are not allowed into the hyperbaric chamber. You may also be required to remove petroleum-based hair and skin care products, as they are a potential fire hazard. During therapy, the air pressure in the chamber is aproximately two to three times higher than normal air pressure. This increased air pressure can create a temporary feeling of fullness in your ears similar to the feeling you get when flying in an airplane, or being in an area with higher elevations. You can relieve this feeling by yawning or swallowing.
Treatment Time
The time a patient receives 100 percent oxygen is typically 90 minutes. However, patients should expect the entire appointment to last about two hours.
Oversight
All hyperbaric treatments are conducted under the direct supervision of a licensed provider specially trained in hyperbaric medicine. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy technicians, specially trained in using and administering hyperbaric oxygen are also present during the entire session to monitor each patient.