When exploring a new treatment, it is reasonable to want to understand it first. On World Patient Safety Day, it is worth setting out clearly how hyperbaric oxygen therapy works.
The therapy itself is gentle and relaxing, as you simply breathe high-concentration oxygen via a face mask while resting inside the chamber. OxyGeneration runs its sessions at 2.0 ATA, and they last 80 to 90 minutes in total, including time on either side for compression and decompression. Under pressure, more oxygen dissolves in the blood plasma, raising the amount that reaches the body's tissues. This supports several of the body's own repair processes: the growth of new blood vessels, the activity of skin and bone cells, and the ability of white blood cells to fight infection.
HBOT is not suitable for everyone, so before a first session every client completes a short screening questionnaire. Some of the questions catch people by surprise, for example, whether you have had recent chest or ear surgery. The same pressure changes that mean people are advised to wait before flying or diving after these operations apply to HBOT as well, so it is simply a case of checking timing with your own doctor first. Where anything is flagged on the screening questionnaire, we ask you to get clearance from your doctor before starting sessions. Every session is monitored throughout by trained chamber operators.
For those using HBOT for conditions such as diabetic foot ulcers, non-healing wounds, or radiation tissue injury, it’s also helpful to know that some treatment courses may be covered by insurance, depending on your insurer and policy.
If you're considering having HBOT and want to understand whether it’s right for you, get in touch with the OxyGeneration team in Galway on 091 394 444 for more information about sessions and how HBOT works.
