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Hey! Can anyone please give me your experiences and results using HBOT for your loved one with an Anoxic Brain Injury?
I was thinking of using this therapy for my husband, but it will eat up most of our rehabilitation fund. Is it worth it? Do you recommend it? He is doing fairly well, but still has some cognitive issues.
I really appreciate your opinions!!!
Hello! My husband also has anoxia from SCA, but is still not "awake". He had his first 40 treatments at an HBOT clinic, and we saw some new activitiy (more movement, focus, etc.). We now have a soft chamber at home which does the same 1.5 ATA (depth) as the HBOT clinic, but uses an oxygen concentrator rather than medical grade oxygen. Therefore the oxygen level is only 85-90% instead of 100%, but still MUCH greater than room air! This is not only more convenient and accessible, but is SOOOO much more cost effective! We purchased our entire set up which will do HUNDREDS of treatments for just slightly more than what only 40 treatments with lodging and expenses cost. We have had a couple of interuptions in treatment and have not yet completed a 40 session set, but have already seen a slight improvement.
A great book that explains how and why HBOT works is THE OXYGEN REVOLUTION by Dr. Paul Harch, and can be found on Amazon.com if you cannot find it locally.
Good luck!
Hope4him
did you try the hyperberic therapy? i have a center close to us. but not sure if the cost offsets the benefits as well
My love one, Billy is now going using a hyperbaric chamber in St. Pete....at Mark Fowler house (he is a prophet from the Mason's group).... he and there groups take donations,, today will be our 8th treatment so not much to tell..........he has cortico blindness so we hope his eyesight comes back!! But we have noticed he is moving much better,,,he gets in and out of the car with greater ease....I am thinking of purchasing our own since the drive there and back and the time in the chamber is substantial.........google testimonials - this treatment works!!!!!
I was thinking of using this therapy for my brother, he had SCA since 2004, i sent him to brain injury clinic, but it didn't work help
i was thinking of hyperbaric chamber using for him.
Can you tell me how much does it cost . is it work really well
Well, we started the HBOT treatments this week. Jeff is on his 4th session, and he says he really feels energized and he sleeps really well. No discernible difference yet, but it's early. Here in Canada the sessions are $200.00 each and we pay for it out of pocket (not covered by insurance or OHIP). Apparently, it either works really well or doesn't work at all. If it works, we might spend the money and get a portable unit for the home, end up being cheaper in the long run.
I will keep you all posted on how it helps/doesn't help. Sarah
Hi. I've read the posts and just want to chime in. I doubt that the oxygen concentrator of the portable 'chamber' is even providing close to 85% oxygen. At the most, I would only say that it's generating 15% to 20% oxygen; you should really look into that. I hate to see you waste time and money, if the manufacturer is saying 85% oxygen - it just doesn't seem possible. That's why we use hard chambers at a clinic; ours, near Boston, provides 100% in a safe facility for $120/hour (less if you purchase more 'dives' in a package). Just so everyone knows, you cannot compare a 'soft' chamber using an oxygen concentrator to a 'hard' steel chamber delivering 100% oxygen. This is a common misconception, unfortunately, and the results are vastly different. Please question the manufacturer of the home unit - what is the manufacturer? I would like to research this. Thanks. Mike, (978) 290-3472 (HOPE-Connection)
Hello, Mike!
I understand your concern, however, I researched this pretty thoroughly before investing in it.
Our chamber is a soft chamber, but it is the only one I know of that actually does 1.5 ATA (the others usually only do 1.3 ATA), which is the depth/pressure that my husband had in the 40 original HBOT dives at a facility in a hard chamber. One can argue that a soft chamber is "not as good" as a hard, but 1.5 ATA (or 7.35psi) is the same pressure no matter what the exterior is.
If the oxygen concentrator were just filling the chamber, then you would be correct in saying that the oxygen level would only be slightly above room oxygen. BUT the oxygen is delivered directly into a face mask through a port in the chamber, thereby remaining concentrated. And while the oxygen is not 100% pure medical grade oxygen, the oxygen concentrator does put out around 85% oxygen.
Our chamber is made by Summit To Sea in France and distributed here in the U.S., and the O2 concentrator is made by Jameson. We purchased it through a dealer - Body Specific, Inc. in Royal Oak, Michigan whose website is www.bodyspecific.com
Earlier this year (Jan. - Feb.) our daughter (22), our son (15, whom I took out of school) and I took my husband (comatose/PVS) on a gurney secured with ratchet straps in the back of our van to Ohio for HBOT. We took his hospital bed and various needed equipment and stayed in a hotel room for 20 days. We transported him ourselves daily to and from the treatments. And although the facility was great (and only cost $100 per treatment) and the hotel gave us a discount - it was expensive and gruelling.
For anyone that can afford to frequent an HBOT facility, has access to one, the means to transport their patient, and the time to do so - DO IT! But for those of us who cannot - thank God there is an alternative!!!
Sincerely,
Hope4him
Keep up the HBOT treatments. My son, Josh, woke up after the 10th treatment. He was in a pretty deep coma and had to be lifted into the chamber by two guys. Now he is up and about. If your husband feels energized after the treatments and sleeps well, that's a good thing.
Wishing you the very best. Josh has had over 100 treatments at Healing Chambers of America in San Diego. We may start up again.
We have stopped after the 10th treatment, as it didn't seem to be doing anything. I know this isn't a long time, but at $200 a session, we can't afford to go 100 times and still pay for speech therapy, occupational therapy, etc. Also, it is about 45 minutes away and I work full-time so getting people to take him is also an issue.
I wish I could win the lottery and get him everything he needs!!! As of December, OHIP is no longer covering any rehabilitation (since they were paying for everything up until now.) They have deemed Jeff capable of completely communicating and living life, but what we want is to help him get back as close as possible to where he was before.
Is feeling energized just part of the oxygen? How would I know if it is working on a cellular level? Is the at-home really that different? I am confused...
Thanks!
Sarah
Sarah,
I'm sorry to hear that things may get more difficult for you and Jeff. (I know his name, now!) I wish I could help you with this but I really don't know anything about HBOT. My wife doesn't work with anyone who does, either. My opinion, slightly off the path, here, is that playing music, as a therapy, may help Jeff as much as anything can at this point. Maybe more. It involves all of his sensory functions and related memories, but isn't hampered by cognitive problems. It gets right to the soul, so to speak. You can help him with it at home and it won't break your bank. It has helped me over the past 3 or 4 months, although I have no kind of measurement system to describe that to you.
I know that you won't give up anytime soon, though. Honestly, Sarah, that hurts me inside because I know how hard he's trying and how devoted you are to him. If I ever win the lottery, I might share it with you.
Could you tell me what 'OHIP' stands for, and are they the ones who decide how 'recovered' Jeff is? In the U.S. they often call that kind of judgement, "close enough for government work!". I've never found that very funny.
Hang on Sarah. You're still the Butterfly that comes back, right? Kuwanyauma?
Please say "Hi" to Jeff for me and tell him he is always in my prayers. And so are you.
Bob
Sarah,
The following link has a list of HBOT facilities including Canadian Provinces, and most cost $100 per session.
http://www.netnet.net/mums/hbolistNon-US.htm
The book "The Oxygen Revolution" by Dr. Paul Harch explains the how and why of hyperbarics very well. I highly recommend reading it.
I don't have an answer for you about how you KNOW if the HBOT is working on a cellular level, but there was a study completed by the University of Pennsylvania where they determined that HBOT (at 2.0ATA / depth) increased stem cells eight fold!
Oxygen is essential to our bodies. During HBOT oxygen molecules are compressed to gain access to parts of the body and brain it could not otherwise enter.
As far as home vs. facility HBOT - please read my last entry above.
Remember - hyperbaric oxygen therapy is called a "slow miracle"; it takes time.
Hope4him
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