HBOT is a medical treatment that delivers 100% oxygen to a person within a pressurized chamber. Each treatment is called a “dive”. During a treatment – oxygen, under pressure, fills the Hyperbaric chamber, increasing the oxygen concentration within a person’s body 15 to 20 times normal at the cellular level. Increased oxygen tension accelerates healing processes and aids in recovery from certain conditions and maladies.
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy ( HBOT ) Technology of HBOT
Mechanisms of Action
Overview: The delive ry of 100% oxygen under pressure (1.5 to 3 ATA) within the hyperbaric chamber provides up to 20 times normal oxygen to all tissues within the body. This oxygen supersaturation is in marked contrast to breathing room air (21% oxygen at 1 ATA).
Direct Pressure to Oxygen Molecules: Inside the hyperbaric chamber, oxygen molecules are compressed and become more soluble, obeying the scientific principles of Boyle’s Universal Gas Law. This phenomenon allows oxygen to effortlessly cross cell membranes and enter all of the body’s fluid systems, including plasma, synovial, lymphatic, interstitial (between cells) and cerebrospinal fluids. Normally, only the red blood cells are capable of transporting oxygen throughout the body. Now, all body fluids combine to provide alternate transport routes for extra oxygen and cumulatively can provide up to 20 times normal O2.
Angiogenesis: The Formation of New Blood Vessels: Hyperbaric Oxygen stimulates the body to grow new capillaries (Angiogenesis :), essentially building a new collateral circulatory system to serve injured and healthy tissues alike. The resulting neovascularization is extremely helpful for reaching tissues and organs that have restricted blood flow (ischemic areas) as well as areas of the body that are lacking or compromised in available oxygen (hypoxic areas).
Increases Fibroblast and Collagen Production: These essential building blocks of connective-tissue, tendon and skin matrix (fibroblasts and collagen) provide the structural framework throughout the body and play a critical role in wound healing. Fibroblast and collagen reproduction and growth are aided by the added availability of increased oxygen provided during hyperbaric conditions.
Decreases Inflammation: Inflammation, one of the most common mechanisms of disease and injury, is caused by biochemical by products that are manufactured by the body’s natural immune response. Hyperbaric oxygen markedly decreases inflammation by stimulating the body’s own anti-inflammatory defences. This may be the single most important function of HBOT.