Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is a form of medical treatment used to treat hypoxic tissues and accelerate wound healing. Photobiomodulation through lasers, also called Low-Level Laser Therapy, is shown to have similar effects and finds its uses in treating various musculoskeletal conditions. A combination of both treatments could be fruitful in addressing various pathologies.
What is Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy?
HBOT is a treatment method designed to deliver oxygen-rich plasma to hypoxic tissues. Wounds and injuries can deprive the cells of oxygen, which may result in cellular death. HBOT brings oxygen to these tissues and, as a result, reduces the chances of swelling, inflammation, and cellular death. This is why HBOT is now commonly used to treat several conditions, including decompression sickness, carbon monoxide and cyanide poisoning, infection, and diabetic wounds.
This phenomenon is not new, as compressed air for healing and therapy was first used in 1662.[1] The first official usage was carried out by the U.S. Navy to treat decompression sickness in deep-sea divers. HBOT has been officially approved for various pathologies that range from chronic musculoskeletal conditions to even bone diseases.
How Does It Work?
For this therapy, the patients enter a specialized, air-pressured chamber with 100% oxygen. The air pressure in this chamber is typically 1.5 to 3 times higher than the average atmospheric pressure. The goal is to make the patients inhale high concentrations of oxygen in a high-air-pressure environment. Here are the commonly known benefits of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy:
- Increases cellular respiration by providing oxygen to cells.[2]
- Enhances the production of potential angiogenic and anti-inflammatory factors, including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), platelet-derived growth factor, and fibroblast growth factor.[3]
- Prevents cellular reperfusion injury.[4]
- Upregulates the formation of collagen and stimulates cellular production.[5]
- High concentrations of oxygen also have anti-bacterial effects on wounds and may result in strengthening the body’s immune system.[6]
Can We Combine Laser Therapy and HBOT?
As full-fledged HBOT chambers can only be accessed in well-equipped facilities, portable Hyperbaric Chambers are on the rise. These chambers are more convenient to use, but they do not fulfill the recommended pressure of 2 ATA with 100% oxygen.[7] Most portable Hyperbaric Chambers usually cannot exceed 1.4 ATA. In this case, a combination of photobiomodulation through Lasers and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is proposed as LLLT can truly boost HBOT since it has similar effects. Several studies have also been conducted to test this treatment modality and have reported striking results.
Mechanism of HBO Chambers with Lasers
Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) has been used in clinical medicine for more than three decades. This technology has received much critical attention over the year as several human and animal trials and studies have been done to determine its clinical efficacy.[8] These studies have shown that LLLT upregulates cellular metabolism by enhancing ATP (adenosine triphosphate) production and has a stimulating effect on cellular proliferation, resulting in accelerated healing and tissue repair.[9]
Based on the scientific literature on the efficacy of both Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and Laser Therapy, several clinical trials have been conducted to investigate the combined effects of these treatments. In these trials, Lasers are either used concurrently with Oxygen Therapy or administered after the patients use HBO chambers.
Literature on the Efficacy of Lasers and HBOT
One of the earliest studies that evaluated the effects of Lasers and HBOT was conducted on human ulcer healing.[10] In this trial, 100 patients with chronic diabetic foot ulcers were treated with this treatment combination for about 4 months. The results showed a striking 81% success rate, where 81 patients showed visible signs of healing in all cases.
Another peer-reviewed case report studies the use of HBOT and Laser Therapy to treat acute wound pressure necrosis in a dog.[11] The patient underwent HBOT in an oxygen chamber, followed by LLLT the same day. The results were almost immediate, with reduced swelling and edema. The dog was treated for only four days and showed complete healing 10 days after the treatment.
Since literature has established a successful use of HBOT and LLLT in addressing wound healing and tissue regeneration, the treatment combination can be used for various conditions ranging from aesthetic procedures to chronic musculoskeletal diseases. If you really want to boost up the effects of HBOT, combining it with Laser will give you maximum results. Check out Berman Partners’ collection of Laser Devices HERE. If you have any questions, contact us, and we would be happy to help.
References
[1] Edwards ML. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Part 1: history and principles. J Vet Emerg Crit Care (San Antonio). 2010 Jun;20(3):284-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-4431.2010.00535.x. PMID: 20636980.
[2] Tezgin D, Giardina C, Perdrizet GA, Hightower LE. The effect of hyperbaric oxygen on mitochondrial and glycolytic energy metabolism: the caloristasis concept. Cell Stress Chaperones. 2020 Jul;25(4):667-677. doi: 10.1007/s12192-020-01100-5. Epub 2020 Apr 6. PMID: 32253741; PMCID: PMC7332662.
[3] Godman CA, Chheda KP, Hightower LE, Perdrizet G, Shin DG, Giardina C. Hyperbaric oxygen induces a cytoprotective and angiogenic response in human microvascular endothelial cells. Cell Stress Chaperones. 2010 Jul;15(4):431-42. doi: 10.1007/s12192-009-0159-0. Epub 2009 Dec 1. PMID: 19949909; PMCID: PMC3082642.
[4] Ren P, Kang Z, Gu G, Liu Y, Xu W, Tao H, Zhang JH, Sun X, Ji H. Hyperbaric oxygen preconditioning promotes angiogenesis in rat liver after partial hepatectomy. Life Sci. 2008 Aug 15;83(7-8):236-41. doi: 10.1016/j.lfs.2008.06.011. Epub 2008 Jun 24. PMID: 18644387.
[5] Godman CA, Joshi R, Giardina C, Perdrizet G, Hightower LE. Hyperbaric oxygen treatment induces antioxidant gene expression. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2010 Jun;1197:178-83. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.05393.x. PMID: 20536847.
[6] Verma R, Chopra A, Giardina C, Sabbisetti V, Smyth JA, Hightower LE, Perdrizet GA. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) suppresses biomarkers of cell stress and kidney injury in diabetic mice. Cell Stress Chaperones. 2015 May;20(3):495-505. doi: 10.1007/s12192-015-0574-3. Epub 2015 Feb 4. PMID: 25648080; PMCID: PMC4406928.
[7] Ortega MA, Fraile-Martinez O, García-Montero C, Callejón-Peláez E, Sáez MA, Álvarez-Mon MA, García-Honduvilla N, Monserrat J, Álvarez-Mon M, Bujan J, Canals ML. A General Overview on the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: Applications, Mechanisms and Translational Opportunities. Medicina (Kaunas). 2021 Aug 24;57(9):864. doi: 10.3390/medicina57090864. PMID: 34577787; PMCID: PMC8465921.
[8] Chung H, Dai T, Sharma SK, Huang YY, Carroll JD, Hamblin MR. The nuts and bolts of low-level laser (light) therapy. Ann Biomed Eng. 2012 Feb;40(2):516-33. doi: 10.1007/s10439-011-0454-7. Epub 2011 Nov 2. PMID: 22045511; PMCID: PMC3288797.
[9] Lubart R, Wollman Y, Friedmann H, Rochkind S, Laulicht I. Effects of visible and near-infrared lasers on cell cultures. J Photochem Photobiol B. 1992 Feb 28;12(3):305-10. doi: 10.1016/1011-1344(92)85032-p. PMID: 1321905.
[10] Landau Z, Schattner A. Topical hyperbaric oxygen and low energy laser therapy for chronic diabetic foot ulcers resistant to conventional treatment. Yale J Biol Med. 2001 Mar-Apr;74(2):95-100. PMID: 11393266; PMCID: PMC2588691.
[11] Ancier, Erica, and Gary Richter. “Hyperbaric and Laser Therapy for Acute Wound Pressure Necrosis.” Today’s Veterinary Practice , vol. 11, no. 2, 24 Feb. 2021, todaysveterinarypractice.com/integrative-alternative-medicine/hyperbaric-and-laser-therapy-for-acute-wound-pressure-necrosis/. Accessed 16 Feb. 2023.
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