Healing With Oxygen

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is a type of treatment used to speed up healing of carbon monoxide poisoning, gangrene, wounds that won’t heal, and infections in which tissues are starved for oxygen.

For this therapy, you enter a special chamber to breathe in pure oxygen in air pressure levels 1.5 to 3 times higher than average. The goal is to fill the blood with enough oxygen to repair tissues and restore normal body function.

We are at Halifax Health – Advanced Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine located in the Lohman Building at Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach. Your therapy will be supervised by a specially trained physician and monitored by a trained technician each day.

Medicare has approved coverage for HBO therapy for many types of chronic, non-healing wounds. Most private insurance companies follow Medicare’s guidelines as well. We will review your insurance plan with you before your therapy starts to make sure you know what your cost will be.

Each chamber is equipped with its own television so that you can watch TV or a movie during your treatment. You may not bring anything into the chamber with you, including books and newspapers. Many patients simply use the time to catch up on well-deserved rest.

On average, treatments last about two hours. This includes the time to pressurize and depressurize the chamber plus 90 minutes at the prescribed treatment depth.

The number of HBO treatments is not pre-set, and each person responds differently to the therapy. The average number of treatments required to heal a patient with a wound is 20 to 60.

For most chronic wounds, you will attend HBO treatment Monday through Friday.

No, the only sensation you will experience is during the pressurization phase of the treatment. The slowly increasing pressure will push on your eardrums. This is the same feeling you would experience when landing in an airplane or diving to the bottom of a swimming pool. The hyperbaric staff will instruct you about different methods of relieving this ear pressure.

No, the treatment is very safe. Your Hyperbaric Team has very strict procedures that assure your safety and make your treatment comfortable. Before your first treatment, you will be given a thorough orientation.

Interestingly enough, most hyperbaric patients do not suffer from claustrophobia. This could be due to either the large size of the chamber or the fact that is has a clear acrylic shell. From inside the chamber, it is possible to see out in all directions. If you still feel anxious about your treatment, the hyperbaric physician can prescribe medication that will relax you and make your treatment less stressful.

The chamber is equipped with two-way communication. You can talk to the outside technician at any time. The technician can talk to you through the chamber microphone.