Several uncontrolled studies of hyperbaric treatment in children with autism have reported clinical improvements; however, this treatment has not been evaluated to date with a controlled study. BMC Pediatrics performed a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial to assess the efficacy of hyperbaric treatment in children with autism.

Methods Applied

62 children with autism recruited from 6 centers, ages 2-7 years (mean 4.92+/-1.21), were randomly assigned to 40 hourly treatments of either hyperbaric treatment at 1.3 atmosphere (atm) and 24% oxygen (”treatment group”, n=33) or slightly pressurized room air at 1.03 atm and 21% oxygen (”control group”, n=29). Outcome measures included Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale, Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC), and Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC).

Conclusions

Children with autism who received hyperbaric treatment at 1.3 atm and 24% oxygen for 40 hourly sessions had significant improvements in overall functioning, receptive language, social interaction, eye contact, and sensory/cognitive awareness compared to children who received slightly pressurized room air. Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov NCT00335790.

The complete article is available as a provisional PDF. The fully formatted PDF and HTML versions are in production.

For Shannon Kenitz of Madison, Wisconsin, winning the Grand Prize in the American Way Magazine annual Road Warrior contest has meant hope for a brighter future for many disabled children. Ms. Kenitz is the mother of a special needs child herself, and she’s donated all of her newly awarded two million Hilton Honors bonus points and one million American Airlines AAdvantage miles to the H.O.P.E. (Hyperbaric Oxygen for Pediatric Endowment) Foundation. The Foundation will use the miles and points for airline travel and hotel stays for the many patients and their families worldwide, who without this help, would find it difficult, if not impossible, to pay for these expenses when traveling to receive the hyperbaric oxygen treatments their injured children desperately need.

“It has been a true blessing to be able to share this prize with others,” said Ms. Kenitz. “I wanted to win this contest so badly so that I could spread awareness of hyperbarics and give the points and miles to help children get the treatments they need to survive. If it weren’t for hyperbaric oxygen treatments, my daughter, Grace, who was born with a rare mitochondrial disease, would not be here today. The treatments saved her life.”

Dr. Kyle Vandyke, medical director of Wisconsin Integrative Hyperbaric Center, the center where Shannon’s daughter Grace receives hyperbaric treatment, attests to the facts, “Grace’s return to life from the brink is an amazing accomplishment. For Grace, hyperbaric therapy has been her salvation.”

For more information about the International Hyperbarics Associations’ H.O.P.E. Foundation and Wisconsin Integrative Hyperbaric Center, please contact the International Hyperbarics Association at info@ihausa.org.

About The International Hyperbarics Association, Inc.:

The International Hyperbarics Association is a non-profit educational and fund-raising organization focusing on the needs of the hyperbaric community. Members of the association include doctors, manufacturers, patients and researchers interested in promulgating the latest findings in the modern field of hyperbaric medicine.

www.ihausa.org

SOURCE International Hyperbarics Association, Inc.

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During the Super Bowl XLIII pregame show, Andrea Kremer reported on the sidelines that Steelers Hines Ward was doing everything he possibly could to make sure he could play. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy came to his rescue! Hyperbaric oxygen chamber was a well-known component of his recovery.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) has a long history. The first chamber used to treat patients was constructed in 1662 by Henshaw. And yes, that date is correct, which makes hyperbaric therapy almost 350 years old. Needless to say, there have been a large number of studies done, and its effectiveness has been well established.

How does HBOT cure?

HBOT treatments involve placing you in a chamber, and then increasing the atmospheric pressure. During the treatment you breathe pure oxygen. This saturates the tissues with oxygen, and reverses any areas of hypoxia (low oxygen levels). As a comparison, the average person breathes in about 6 pounds of oxygen a day, which is about the same amount by weight of food and water intake.

During a single hour of HBOT, a person will take in about 2.4 pounds of oxygen. This increases the oxygen content of the tissues by a factor of 10-15.

Some of the effects that HBOT has are :

• to promote the growth of new blood vessels,
• decreases swelling and inflammation,
• deactivates toxins, increase the body’s ability to fight infections,
• clears out toxins and metabolic waste products,
• improve the rate of healing.