A 61-year-old right-handed male stoke patient was suffering from hemiparesis and physical weakness in the right upper limb for 2 years. He then underwent a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) for 60 daily sessions at 2.0 ATA. Each session was 90 minutes and included two 5-minute air breaks. Following this simple 3 month course of HBOT, both clinical and objective hand motor improvements were observed and documented though functional brain imaging scans comparing both pre and post HBOT. From the fMRI data collected, researchers of this study were able to conclude that “HBOT induces brain plasticity and functional improvement in chronic post-stroke patients” <view study> Read Less

Management of chronic strokes remains a challenge within our current medical system, yet the intervention of hyperbaric oxygen therapy has consistently been shown to improve stroke recovery, even years after the brain insult. This study followed 4 patients (from 14 months to 15 years post stroke) who were given a typical 8 week hyperbaric protocol consisting of 40 individual sessions (at an effective dosage of 1.8 ATA) and evaluated the outcome measures through functional MRI imaging (fMRI). Note, fMRI is a non invasive, robust and reliable technique to assess and monitor neuronal functional change. The results were very impressive and should give encouragement for this protocol to be more widely used within the stroke recovery community. Here is a summary of all 4 patients along with the details regarding their recovery:

60 year old male (14 month old stroke) with severe, non-fluent aphasia, associated with retained comprehension, dyslexia and dysgraphia, a right upper limb spastic paralysis and a right lower limb paresis, and post-stroke depression.

Results — Aphasia and the ability to speak improved noticeably, helping to regain some social life. Accordingly, the negative attitude was replaced by positivity, good mood and interest. Right lower limb paresis improved with better gait and stance. However, the right hand paralysis did not improve, except for a decrease in spasticity

68 year old male (5 year old stroke) with moderate signs of dysarthria (he sounded clumsy in reading aloud short passages), an unsteady, wide-base gait and dysphagia

Results — A marked clinical improvement in the language fluency, such that he was able to read aloud a written text, without a hitch. Ataxia and dysphagia improved as well

48 year old male (15 year old stroke) with recurrent seizures, mild signs of dysarthria, upper left limb paralysis, lower left limb paresis, lack of coordination in the right limbs, severe in the lower right extremity and to a lesser extent in the upper right extremity

Results — He dramatically improved his speech fluency. The left lower limb paresis improved together with an increase in walking autonomy, but he was still unable to flex and extend the left foot rhythmically. Also the right limbs coordination improved. On the contrary, the left upper limb paralysis did not change at all.

34 year old male (17 month old stroke) with global non fluent aphasia with some deficits in the reading comprehension, a complete spastic hemiplegia of the right upper limb with spastic hypertonia, a partial paresis of the right inferior limb (but he was able to walk with some walking aids) and right hemilateral hypoaesthesia

Results — Good improvement in the common everyday acts of his life, as speaking and understanding and also in walking, but not in his upper limb paralysis

Once again, it is important to keep in mind that fMRI imagining confirmed these benefits and can play a future role in determining hyperbaric-based protocols for chronic stroke sufferers <view study> Read Less

Depression is one of the more common consequences of a stroke, affecting as many as 1/3 of stroke victims. This condition, known as post stroke depression (PSD)is currently not (or inadequately) treated by many physicians and needs to be quickly identified and treated appropriately. Based on a “pool of analysis, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is effective and safe therapeutic approach for PSD” <view study> Read Less

A 10 year (2008-2018) retrospective analysis was conducted on (chronic) stroke patients (>3 months) The hyperbaric protocol consisted of 90 minute daily sessions, each at 2.0 ATA (with 5 minute air breaks every 20 minuets), 5 days per week for a total of 40 to 60 sessions. Even though the patients were treated after a median of 1.5±3.3 years post-stroke, there were significant cognitive improvements in all the cognitive domains which were measured using objective computerized test <view study> Read Less

Currently, there is a great deal of focus and attention being put on hyperbaric oxygen therapy, due to the promising results seen in clinical research and the potential application that this can have for those individuals who have suffered a stroke or TBI. Now, there is strong evidence supporting the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy BEFORE brain trauma or injury, by preconditioning the brain with hyperbaric oxygen therapy. This study shows that HBOT preconditioning stands as a robust prophylactic treatment for sequestration of inflammation inherent in stroke and TBI. Though we can't predict when the brain will be under traumatic stress (unless it's a planned surgical procedure),  hyperbaric oxygen may become one of the best ways to protect our brain from future injuries. The following groups of individuals would be the ones that would most likely benefit:

• Athletes and contact sports affecting the head
• Patients undergoing planned brain surgery
• High-risk stroke patients
• Those who are at risk for neuro-degenerative conditions
• Elderly

The future holds bright for the application of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for being part of both the treatment of brain trauma and for the prevention of the severity of damage that can subsequently occur <view study>     Read Less