For many years pure oxygen has been utilized as a treatment in hospitals and doctors offices, and this treatment often shows some very positive results. The procedure is relaxing as well as being non-invasive to patients who frequently are also suffering serious injuries or life-threatening disease. However, there are risks which must be understood while in the stage of hyperbaric facility planning.
The building itself must be up to code and authorized to store large amounts of pure oxygen on site. Oxygen canisters are flammable and can be highly explosive, thus posing a threat to the surrounding community. Not only that, but the office where the procedure is being carried out would be utterly destroyed along with everyone inside.
So far the FDA has approved this method to treat divers who suffer from decompression sickness. This is a condition that results from coming up from very deep water too quickly, and it is the only condition that the FDA has approved to be treated in such a chamber. As such, vacation areas and long-distance cruise ships where many people go deep sea diving is a popular place for just such facilities.
Possibly one of the more dangerous risks associated with it is the confidence that people put in this treatment to cure many diseases for which the FDA has not recognized it as being effective. A quick Internet search reveals claims that it can cure everything from cancer to diabetes, depression, and even autism. These claims have not yet been proven, as it is still in the research stage at this time.
Patients and many doctors regard this procedure as benign and basically beneficial because it does improve the way the patient feels. When one is facing a potentially life-threatening disease, any treatment which improves a symptom can be viewed as showing promise. Unfortunately this can cause some patients to think they should resort to the chamber and cease other life-saving treatments such as chemo or radiation therapy.
There are some health risks associated with this type of oxygen therapy, and patients should be aware of them. Seizures have been reported occurring as a result of high-oxygen saturation. Roughly ten percent of patients experience some form of seizure, so many facilities now require a ten minute period on room air for every hour and a half they spend in the chamber.
A temporary decrease in visual acuity, known as myopia, can develop as a result of this treatment. So far this appears to be only temporary, but it can create a real problem for patients. It takes a period of time for this myopia to return to normal, and such side-effects are the reason doctors will recommend only limited amounts of time within the chamber.
An even more serious side-effect is the potential for permanent damage to the inner ear of patients who spend long spans of time in the chamber on a regular basis. This vertigo can cause any patient to fall, but especially those who are over the age of 65 or have terminal illness. Currently there is no system in place to track the hours of chamber-time a patient receives from various facilities, and there are no laws restricting it either.
The building itself must be up to code and authorized to store large amounts of pure oxygen on site. Oxygen canisters are flammable and can be highly explosive, thus posing a threat to the surrounding community. Not only that, but the office where the procedure is being carried out would be utterly destroyed along with everyone inside.
So far the FDA has approved this method to treat divers who suffer from decompression sickness. This is a condition that results from coming up from very deep water too quickly, and it is the only condition that the FDA has approved to be treated in such a chamber. As such, vacation areas and long-distance cruise ships where many people go deep sea diving is a popular place for just such facilities.
Possibly one of the more dangerous risks associated with it is the confidence that people put in this treatment to cure many diseases for which the FDA has not recognized it as being effective. A quick Internet search reveals claims that it can cure everything from cancer to diabetes, depression, and even autism. These claims have not yet been proven, as it is still in the research stage at this time.
Patients and many doctors regard this procedure as benign and basically beneficial because it does improve the way the patient feels. When one is facing a potentially life-threatening disease, any treatment which improves a symptom can be viewed as showing promise. Unfortunately this can cause some patients to think they should resort to the chamber and cease other life-saving treatments such as chemo or radiation therapy.
There are some health risks associated with this type of oxygen therapy, and patients should be aware of them. Seizures have been reported occurring as a result of high-oxygen saturation. Roughly ten percent of patients experience some form of seizure, so many facilities now require a ten minute period on room air for every hour and a half they spend in the chamber.
A temporary decrease in visual acuity, known as myopia, can develop as a result of this treatment. So far this appears to be only temporary, but it can create a real problem for patients. It takes a period of time for this myopia to return to normal, and such side-effects are the reason doctors will recommend only limited amounts of time within the chamber.
An even more serious side-effect is the potential for permanent damage to the inner ear of patients who spend long spans of time in the chamber on a regular basis. This vertigo can cause any patient to fall, but especially those who are over the age of 65 or have terminal illness. Currently there is no system in place to track the hours of chamber-time a patient receives from various facilities, and there are no laws restricting it either.
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