Oxygen Therapy - In Our Hyperbaric Chambers

High Dose Oxygen Therapy (HDOT), also called hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), means breathing a high level of oxygen inside a chamber where the pressure is increased.

Normally, the air we breathe contains about 21% oxygen. Most of this oxygen is carried around the body by red blood cells.

During HDOT, the higher pressure allows much more oxygen to dissolve directly into the liquid part of the blood.

This means the blood can carry extra oxygen to the body’s tissues.

The extra oxygen can also move further away from the tiny blood vessels and into nearby tissues. This may help areas where the blood supply is reduced and the tissues are not getting as much oxygen as they need.

HDOT cannot make blood flow through a completely blocked artery, but where some blood flow remains, it can greatly increase the amount of oxygen reaching the surrounding tissue

How extra oxygen may help

Our bodies need oxygen to repair themselves.

Higher oxygen levels can help:

* white blood cells fight infection;
* damaged tissues repair themselves;
* the body make collagen, which is important for healing;
* reduce swelling in some damaged tissues; and
* encourage the growth of new small blood vessels.

The Hyperoxia–Hypoxia Paradox

There may also be another important effect.

During treatment, the body is exposed to a very high level of oxygen. Afterwards, the oxygen level returns to normal.

The body notices this big change.

Even though the oxygen level has only returned to normal, some cells respond as though oxygen has fallen considerably. This can switch on some of the body’s natural repair and adaptation systems.

This is known as the hyperoxia–hypoxia paradox.

These natural signals can encourage tissue repair and the growth of new blood vessels.

HDOT may help in two ways:

1. More oxygen reaches the tissues during treatment.
2. Repeated changes in oxygen levels may stimulate the body’s own repair systems.

In simple terms, HDOT does more than just give the body extra oxygen. The repeated rise and fall in oxygen levels may also encourage the body to respond, adapt and repair.