It's hard to believe the healing power of atmospheric pressure and oxygen when administered in the proper amounts. For years physicians and scientists have been fascinated by this phenomenon, but only recently has hyperbaric medicine's potential raised eyebrows in interest.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be traced back hundreds of years to a British physician known as Henshaw in 1662; however, it has only received significant recognition within the last 40 years from the medical community. Initial fame stemmed from the benefits of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2) therapy when used to treat decompression sickness in divers.

Today, HBO2 therapy has been accepted as an adjunct therapy for the treatment of a number of ailments, including chronic diabetic wounds, carbon monoxide poisoning, crush injuries and tissue damage caused by radiation therapy. But some urge further exploration into its potential.

"Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can dramatically improve the quality of life for patients with certain conditions that have not responded well to standard treatment protocols," says Richard W. King Jr., MD, medical director of HyOx Medical Treatment Center in Marietta, Ga.

But what exactly is HBO2 therapy?

HBO2 is a medical treatment in which a patient breathes 100 percent pure oxygen intermittently while inside a pressurized hyperbaric chamber, which increases atmospheric pressure by up to three times the normal pressure.

While normal, breathable air is only 21 percent oxygen, pure oxygen combined with increased atmospheric pressure supersaturates the blood with oxygen. These high concentrations of oxygen work as a drug to heal weakened or damaged tissue.

By increasing the amount of oxygen carried by the blood to distressed areas, HBO2 therapy facilitates healing and fights infection by stimulating fibroblast proliferation - the tissues' protein factory that forms essential fibers in connective tissue cells.

"The key benefit for conditions ranging from chronic problem wounds to crush injuries is more rapid healing, and in some cases, the salvaging of limbs," explains King.

HBO2 therapy also helps to:

• Fight infection
• Encourage growth of new blood vessels
• Decrease risks of complications pre- or post-surgery
• Speed soft tissue and bone recovery after radiation therapy
• Reduce incidence of amputation in diabetic patients

"HBO2 therapy is considered an adjunct therapy to be introduced when standard care protocols do not produce the desired result," says King. Although patients shouldn't run to the nearest HBO2 facility for a common paper cut, hyperbaric oxygen medicine should remain on the horizon of possible prescriptions when certain conditions resist standard treatment.

Conditions treated at HyOx Medical Treatment Center and other hyperbaric oxygen therapy facilities include: acute ischemias: peripheral arterial insufficiency (blocked arteries); crush injury (e.g.. foot run over by a car); and air or gas embolism, decompression illness (the "bends"); chronic ischemias: diabetic wounds of the lower extremity (e.g., foot wounds); chronic non-healing wounds; and comprised skin grafts and flaps.

Once they have been evaluated, patients are put on a treatment schedule that varies depending on the condition. HBO2 should be performed like any other therapy - regularly. "Hyperbaric oxygen is a true therapy and needs to be performed daily, sometimes twice a day, to get the correct dosage of oxygen for the condition being treated," says King.

King reports that many patients with conditions that do not appear on the list of accepted conditions developed by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society (the field's standards and protocol setting organization) have still benefited from HBO2 therapy.

"Oxygen is used as a drug and the dose is dependent on the length of the treatment session and pressure level," says King. Severity of the condition and the body's responses to the treatment generally determine treatment length.

The Patient Experience

There are two types of clinical hyperbaric chambers offered to patients. Patients not sensitive to claustrophobia may choose a monoplace chamber, which requires the patient to lie still during treatments that average two hours each. Monoplace chambers treat one patient at a time. "Some patients prefer the privacy that a monoplace chamber offers, while others find it constricting and claustrophobic," King says.

Patients who are sensitive to claustrophobic conditions may prefer a multiplace chamber. Multiplace chambers can accommodate two or more patients at the same time and enable patients to sit or lie comfortably during treatment and the ability to stand, stretch and move about as needed. Medications and food can be provided to patients along with access to a bathroom. Both chambers generally provide television or movies as a way to pass the time.

Although "increased atmospheric pressure" may sound intimidating, hyperbaric treatment is painless and most patients only experience "the sensation of fullness in their ears, similar to what is experienced driving up or down a mountain road or changing altitudes in an airplane," according to King.

Emphasis on evidence-based medicine and research funding is leading to increased assessments and studies of hyperbaric medicine, King says; however, he feels that it is important that more members of the medical community learn about today's possible uses of this therapy.

"At this stage, the patient has often suffered a great deal of pain and restrictions in their lifestyles," says King. "We would like to work with care providers earlier in the process and evaluate at what state it is appropriate to introduce HBO2 therapy."

The sooner more people realize hyperbaric oxygen therapy is an option of treatment and not a last resort, the less pain patients will need to endure so they can improve their quality of life.

Janine Kusza is a freelance writer living in New Jersey.