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Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Anoxic Brain Injury

Hope4him
0 Recommendations

My husband has been in a coma since his cardiac arrest in Sept. '08. The attending neurologists at the hopsital gave us little hope. We got a second (very different) neurologist's opinion, which was that only about 10% of my husband's brain sustained damage, and that he was "recoverable". Next week I hope to start him in hyperbaric oxygen therapy to awaken the neurons in his brain out of the "idle mode", and to force blood flow into the recoverable areas of his injured brain. I will report future updates.

Explore topics in this discussion:

Plague Surgery Anoxic brain injury Sudden cardiac arrest Heart attack Carbon monoxide poisoning Ataxia

21 replies

Mommas_boys

Dear Hope4Him,
I have heard many good and positive results with the Hyperbaric Chamber, though not specifically for this. Our prayers are with you.

silba40

My prayers and hope are with you. I've had it all in my family, and I know how you feel.
My daughters head broke the window of a car, and she went into coma after the wrong treatment. She is doing much better now.
Once they bring him around, I'd like to suggest giving him flavored fish oil everyday. It helps the nerves function, and will heal the heart. I had a heart attack, and took 5 tblsp. flavored fish oil from Swanson Pharmaceuticals every day. My recent exam shows a normal heartbeat and no damage. I hope this helps, let me know how you both are.

Bus

Dear Hope4him,
I would check with my heart doctor also. I was told NOT to go into the Hyperbaric Chamber because it was twice atmospheric pressure oxygen and my heart couldn't take the double pressure. Maybe they can keep the oxygen @ one atmospheric pressure? I have seen good results with facial surgery healing from the Hyperbaric Chamber.
I don't know.
Bus Awakening Heart

Hope4him

Hello, Bus!
My husband's doctor is aware of the hyperbaric oxygen therapy he is now receiving. I don't know your condition, and I'm not a doctor, but I do know that much of the medical community is ignorant about hyperbarics for anything other than the 13 deemed acceptable ailments (i.e. the bends, carbon monoxide poisoning, wound care, etc.) You might consider getting a second opinion. (?) Good luck!
Hope4him

Hope4him

Anyone interested in learning about the benefits of HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) really needs to visit the following sites:

http://www.oceanhbo.com/
http://www.harchhyperbarics.com/

djs2

Hi Hope4him,
I am new to the site and saw your posting on hyperbaric oxygen therapy you are using with your husband. I am thinking about using it for my husband. He had a heart attack 3 years ago and suffered an anoxic brain injury. It seems like he has been regressing in his walking and ability to do things. Medicines have not helped and have given him side effects so I am frustrated with that route. How is your husband doing with it. I'm not sure if mine can clear his ears when going under pressure so they said he would probably need to have tubes put in. Are you familiar with this procedure? He is 56 years old and has a feeding tube so I'm hoping it will help his walking, talking, and swallowing. Let me know how things are going. We live in Minnesota and I can only find one place to do the therapy at.
djs2

Hope4him

Hello, djs2!
Sorry for my delay in answering - it's been a busy week! My husband had a cardiac arrest in Sept. '08 and has not awakened from it. He is in a "vegetative state" of coma, he opens his eyes and moves some, but is not "aware" (although sometimes I really think he SEES me). He has a feeding tube, so does not eat by mouth. My husband did well with the HBOT, and even started to swallow the minute he heard the chamber door close, I am told. I am not big on invasive procedures, so I would not opt to have tubes surgically placed in his ears unless you tried the HBOT and he was uncomfortable. (Is there another TUBE that goes in the ear?)

Wisconsin does not have much in the way of freestanding HBOT from what I can see either. Below are two that I found, and they are both in the Minneapolis/ St. Paul area. Have you looked in a neighboring state? For us going to Ohio was closer than one in Indiana, where we live.

Northwest Hyperbaric Services
724 North First Street, Suite 600
Minneapolis, MN 55401
612. 940.2162

http://www.mnhyperbaric.org/ info@mnhyperbaric.org.

Due to a change in the HBOT clinic where we went this winter, we will be unable to go there for now. Therefore, I am looking into a portable, soft shell HBOT that will do the 1.5 ATA dive needed, with an added pressure valve AND an oxygen concentrator to bump the oxygen up to 95%. It will slightly more expensive than one session of 40 treatments, but it will do hundreds and hundreds of treatments, and we won't have to travel anywhere.

I am curious. Was your husband in a coma after his heart attack three years ago? If so - for how long?

Good luck with what ever you decide to do. You know your husband better than anyone, so do what will work best for the two of you.

Hope4him

djs2

Hi Hope4him,
Thanks for your reply. My husband was in what I would consider a coma for about 2 1/2 weeks. I don't recall them calling it that but later there was mention of the word coma. He then was moved to a different hospital for brain injuries and woke up after a couple days there. I did find a private hyperbaric clinic in Plymouth, MN. My husband, son and I went yesterday to check it out and meet the doctor and other staff. The doctor actually had use hyperbaric oxygen for her two autistic sons and is into functional medicine. We are going to give it a try for 40 dives starting June 8 when I'm done working at school. The doctor advised trying a dive first before putting tubes in the ears to see if they can manually help if Dan isn't able to clear his own ears. Did they have to manually clear the pressure from your husband's ears? I'll let you know how things go and let me know how it goes for you. I'll be praying for you and your husband.
djs2

Hope4him

djs2,

No, my husband did not need help clearing his ears.
Good luck on your HBOT experience; I hope you see some improvement within the 20 treatments! Please keep us all posted! I will do the same, but it appears that there is currently a 4 week wait on the soft chamber for home use as they are so much in demand. I will pray for your family too!

Hope4him

JoannaL

Hello,
I am new to this community. My father suffered a sudden cardiac arrest 2 1/2 years ago on Christmas Eve. He was put in a coma & given the hypothermic chamber to reduce the damage. One neurologist gave him little hope and another neurologist told us there was a possibility of hope. On Jan. 1st my father began awaking from his coma & showing signs of brain activity. About 2 1/2 months later he was released from the hospital rehab. At that time he had ataxia (difficulty with balance) and was eating soft foods. In June his health diminished drastically. He was put back in the hospital with a feeding tube reinserted. Since then he has been through countless therapies. He still has not passed the swallow test.
So, DJS2, I can definitely sympathize with the mysteries of decline. Currently my dad uses the wheelchair for most things, his fine motor skills are worsening, and the panic/breathing attacks continue to plague him.

Does anyone know of any research/information on cases like this? Will the decline continue no matter what or are we missing something?
We live in Florida.

Hope4him

JoannaL,

I wish I had more answers for you, but all I can tell you is that if traditional medicine is not working for your dad - maybe you should look into hyperbarics. Since you are in Florida, I would suggest visiting the Ocean Hyperbarics site at www.oceanhbo.com , and possibly talking to them about your dad and his issues.

Regarding my husband, I figure that since doctors have no answers - we are going to continue with a treatment that has helped many people with neurological and circulatory conditions.

Good Luck!
Hope4him

JoannaL

DJS2,

Thank you for the link. I was wondering how the hyperbaric treatment was going?
Your husband's current condition & my father's current condition seem very similar. He is 2 1/2 years out and we are about to replace his PEG tube.
He experience with panic/breathing attacks?

Joanna

djs2

Hi Joannal,
My husband hasn't had any panic attacks. He is anxious but it is most of the time. So far we haven't seen anything from the oxygen therapy, but he will be starting his 20th dive today so I am hoping soon.

djs2

jjame0113

My mom went into cardiac arrest in dec 09, she was than in a coma for about 21/2 weeks and now is in a vegetative state. We recently have looked into doing they hyperbaric chamber and found a dr. in connecticut that we will soon meet with. We (her family) want to do anything to help her, and I'm glad I found this site! I look forward to hearing about your loved ones and how the hyperbaric therapy is working for them!

JoannaL

Jjame0113,

I am so sorry to hear about your mother and I can sympathize with you and your suffering. My only advice is to talk openly with a doctor about life if your mother does recover. I know that I wish before any treatment was done that an open conversation of how my dad's life would change dramatically & what the life of a caregiver is.
It is a very tough desicion and I know you only want the best for your mother. I also learned that nurses can be your best resources!

My thoughts/prayers are with you.

Hope4him

jjame0113,

I am sorry to hear of your mom, but welcome to this site. Please see the following site regarding HBOT, which explains what hyperbarics is and how it works for coma, PVS and other neurological conditions.

http://comarecovery.org/Hyperbaric.shtm

Also - find a copy of a book written by Dr. Paul Harch called THE OXYGEN REVOLUTION. You can find it in some online bookstore if you cannot find it locally.
Good luck on your quest for help for your mom!
My thoughts and prayers will be with you also.

Hope4him

jjame0113

thank you joann and hope! Thanks for the website, and I recently just bought that book, it was a great buy!

michelleL

How did the neurologist come to this determination? Is your husband in a PVS? My husband had a cardiac arrest July 11th and is stil in a PVS. The doctors are not optomistic but have only given bedside diagnosis.
I am looking for answers also. I have heard that hyperbareck does wonders but not sure if it fits my situation.

Hope4him

michelleL,

Yes, my husband is in PVS, and has been since about the time he came home from the hospital. There have been many small changes though. The brain will heal, but it takes time - even WITH the hyperbaric treatments. I am not sure what you are referring to when you asked how the neurologist came to a determination. If you are referring to the hyperbaric treatments - that was my choice. Most neurologists would not tell you about hyperbarics. In fact, you probably won't get many answers from your neurologist(s) as far as if and when your husband will recover, and that's because they really do not know. So what they tend to do is try to get you to give up on your loved one. Without knowing anything about your situation, all I can tell you is to get tough and fight for him if you feel he has and deserves a chance to heal. Also - try to stay positive, and don't let anyone try to take your hope away from you!

If you would like to talk more - add me on your "friends" list and I will give you my email address and/or phone

Take care!
Hope4him

sophianbilly

Dear Hope::: Billy my better half!:) is using HYOT for about a week more than a week now and i'm thinking of buying one??? he has cortico blindness and i'm hopeful that this could help.......???
www.powercatcharter.com/Billy

thanks,,,,,,Sophia

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