URMC / Wound Center / Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBO)
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBO) is used as an adjunctive treatment for problematic, non-healing wounds that meet specific criteria; it is expected that 10 to 20% of the wound care cases will do so. Over the course of HBO treatments, patients are evaluated to see if the concentration of oxygen has increased in the blood near the wound. If the oxygen level is higher, the therapy is most likely beneficial to the patient.
During the treatments, the patient breathes 100 percent oxygen inside a pressurized chamber, quickly increasing the concentration of oxygen in the bloodstream, where it is delivered to a patient's wound site for faster healing. Essentially, HBO therapy helps heal the wound from the inside out. This therapy can help reduce swelling, fight infection, and build new blood vessels, ultimately producing healthy tissue. It is also effective in fighting certain types of infections, improving circulation, in stimulating growth of new blood vessels, and in treating soft tissue radiation injuries, chronic refractory osteomyelitis, compromised skin grafts and flaps, and diabetic wounds of the lower extremities.
The Strong Wound Healing Center is proud to be accredited by the Undersea Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) since 2014. UHMS accreditation means our facility has met or exceeded the highest standards of care and patient safety through rigorous evaluation of our operations, including equipment, staff and training to ensure that the utmost quality is maintained within the specialty of undersea and hyperbaric medicine. This accreditation demonstrates UR Medicine’s commitment to providing the highest quality of patient care at Strong Wound Healing Center. We are proud of our team members for achieving this significant milestone and of their commitment to their patients.
Indications for Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Diabetic ulcers of the lower extremities- Soft tissue radionecrosis and osteoradionecrosis
- Chronic refractory osteomyelitis
- Compromised skin grafts and flaps
- Crush injury/acute traumatic peripheral ischemia
FAQs about Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy