0. Hyperbaric Oxygen and Wound Care Standards
Michael Lusko, DO, FACEP- Board Certified HBO Physician
Medical Director- The Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine, Baptist Medical Center Downtown
Hyperbaric Oxygen and Wound Care Standards

1. Objectives
Enhance physician education regarding the scientific foundation of HBO as an adjunctive tool in advanced wound care.
Provide information to physicians on the proper patient selection and risk management associated with safe, effective HBO delivery.

2. What is HBO Therapy?
Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) is a medical treatment in which the patient is entirely enclosed in a pressure chamber breathing 100% oxygen at greater than one atmosphere pressure.

3. What is not HBO?

4. What is this ?

5. How HBO Works

6. How it works: The Mechanical Effects of HBO
1. Direct Pressure - Reduces bubble size 2. Hyperoxygenation - Delivery of oxygen to hypo-perfused tissues - Promotes angiogenesis & neovascularization 3. Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity - Aids in oxygen-dependent killing of bacteria - Facilitates oxygen dependent transport of antibiotics 4. Vasoconstriction - Limits leukocyte adhesion (reduces effects of reperfusion injury) - Decreases tissue edema

7. Direct Pressure:
Boyle's Law
For more than a century this mechanism has formed the basis for hyperbaric oxygen therapy as the standard of care for (DCS) decompression sickness and cerebral arterial gas embolism (AGE).
Robert Boyle

8. Hyperoxygenation: Physiology
Cardiopulmonary - Increase in PaO2 - Hgb 97% saturated at atmospheric pressure - Maximization does not significantly increase O2 delivery - Increase in dissolved O2 -Using 100% FiO2 at 3 atm increases up to 2000 mmHg -Increases O2 from 3 ml/L blood to 60 ml/L -20 times more O2 circulating in plasma

9. Hyperoxygenation: Physiology (The Start)
Dr. Ite Boerema

10. Hyperoxygenation: Physiology (The Start)
The Chamber
The Pig (24 hrs post tx)

11. Like all good experiments, Dr
Like all good experiments, Dr. Boerema has been replicated many times with like results.

12. Hyperoxygenation: Physiology
Cardiopulmonary - Dissolved O2 diffuses into RBC impassible areas - May also deliver O2 in absence of functional Hgb - 100% O2 at 3.0 atm; effects at capillary beds > Doubles distance of venous diffusion. >Quadruples distance of arterioal diffusion

13. Oxygen diffusion distances:
36 microns- Patient breathing room air 21% oxygen 280 microns- Patient breathing 100% oxygen at 2.0 ATA At 2.0 ata breathing 100% O2 arterial blood PO2 can achieve levels greater than 1500mmHg. This high PO2 value allows for a greatly expanded radius of diffusion of O2. This also creates a steep oxygen gradient from open capillaries to the edge of the wound. As a result, tissues with borderline ischemia or hypoxia can be intermittently supplied with oxygen in quantities sufficient to accelerate wound healing, and enhance leukocyte microbiocidal function, and stave off necrosis.

14. Diffusing distance of O2 from functioning capillaries:
Capillary blood flow
Capillary blood flow
Wound Margins
ata with 21% O2
ata with 100% O2
Note: Increasing the diffusing distance of oxygen, improves oxygenation of tissue with borderline ischemia by increasing the ability of capillary beds to overlap one another.

15. Hyperoxygenation: Physiology
Tissue & Cellular Levels - Tissue PO2 is 55 mmHg at atmospheric pressure. > Tissue PO2 > 40 mmHg is needed to initiate healing. - Using FiO2 100% at 3 atm it increases to 500 mmHg: > Almost 10 fold increase in tissue oxygen tension. - Increased activation of fibroblasts & osteoblasts. - Promotes angiogenesis & neovascularization.

16. Neovascularization & Angiogenesis:
Represents an indirect and delayed response to serial HBOT.
Collagen forms a basement membrane that provides structure support for these budding vessels.
Capillaries then grow into hypoxic areas.
HBOT increases the amount of oxygen reaching advancing cells.
HBOT enables this new vascular supply to advance quickly, ensuring faster wound closure.

17. Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity: Bacteriostatic / Bactericide
Generation of oxygen free radicals
Bacterial replication inhibited.
Toxin production inhibited
Protentiation of antimicrobial agents.
Enhanced White Cell Function
Phagocytic killing requires a minimum of 30 mmHg of oxygen.
Phagocytic killing increases as the partial pressure of oxygen increases.

18. Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity: Oxygen Consumption and Infected Wounds
Not only are infection potentiated by hypoxia, but infections further impair wound healing by increasing hypoxia.
The more leukocytes and bacteria there are in a wound, the higher the oxygen consumption and the lower the local tissue PO2.
Oxygen consumption by leukocytes rises approximately 50 fold in the process of killing bacteria.

19. Wound Care & Hyperbaric Medicine.
Blood Glucose Levels
Published in
Wound Care & Hyperbaric Medicine.
2012; 3 (3):
HBO patients with an average daily BGL of < 200 mg/dL during HBO had a 89% healing rate.
Patients that had an average BGL of >200 mg/dL, only had a 24% healing rate.

20. Treatment Protocols:
Oxygen, under increased pressure, is a potent drug.
HBO can produce noticeable toxic effects if administered indiscriminately.
Safe time-dose limits have been established for HBO exposure, and these profiles form the basis for all TT.
In those cases for which angiogenesis is the primary goal, ≈ 20 to 30 treatments may be necessary. The precise number of treatments depends upon clinical response of each pt.
Treatments may be given once, twice or occasionally three times daily and may last up to 120 minutes.

21. Cycling:
We know that tissue hyperoxia lasts longer than the actual exposure (2 to 4 hours) depending on the type of tissue. Many researchers have suggested that this effect may last as long as 6 to 8 hours post-treatment in some tissues.
The effects on bacterial killing, angiogenesis, collagen deposition, are cumulative and will last beyond the exposure time.
For instance, since bacteria are killed during exposure, the bacterial count cannot bounce back to pre-treatment levels immediately.
Nitric oxide production also rises temporarily, leading to increased perfusion.

22. The PO2 Wave: Base-line tcpO2 25 mmHg
After treatments the base-line tcpO2 level starts to move up.
Increased tissue pO2 last 2-8 hrs
1400 mmHg
The base-line level will continue moving up to within 80% of normal tissue/post HBO.
Level required for normal wound healing 40 mmHg
Tx # 1
Tx # 2
Tx # 16-20
20 mmHg
HBO Tx mins.
Tissue pO2 levels 6-8 hrs post therapy.
Approximately hrs until next treatment.

23. Indication for HBO Therapy

24. Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society: Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Indications 12th Ed.
“As each year goes by, the body of scientific evidence to support the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy builds…”

25. Indications Approved for Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Severe Anemia
Intracranial Abscess
Necrotizing Soft Tissue Infections
Refractory Osteomyelitis
Delayed Radiation Injuries (Soft Tissue and Bony Necrosis)
Compromised Grafts and Flaps
Acute Thermal Burn Injury
Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Air or Gas Embolism
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Clostridial Myonecrosis (Gas Gangrene)
Crush Injuries/Compartment Syndromes
Decompression Sickness
Central Retinal Artery Occlusion*
Enhancement of Healing in Selected Problem Wounds
Acute Sensory-Neural Hearing Loss

26. Decompression Sickness:

27. Enhancement of Healing in Selected Problem Wounds:
Re-establish wound oxygen gradient.
Prepare for definitive coverage or surgery.
Hyperoxygenation
Vasoconstriction
Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity.
DCS CPG: H02.01A Diabetic Lower Extremity
H02.01B Critical Limb Ischemia- Arterial Insufficiency Ulcers.

28. Diabetic Wound of the Lower Extremity
Pre-HBO
Post HBO

29. Refractory Osteomyelitis:
Chronic infection in bone which has failed to heal with conventional therapy. (surgery/antibiotics).
HBO is used adjunctively.
Hyperoxygenation
Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity
Vasoconstriction
DCS CPG: H02.06

30. Refractory Osteomyelitis:

31. Crush Injuries Compartment Syndromes and Other Acute Traumatic Ischemias:
Blood flow to extremity is impeded.
May be diffused crush or disruption of arterial flow.
HBO used in conjunction with surgery (fasciotomy).
Hyperoxygenation
Vasoconstriction
DCS CPG: H02.03

32. Crush Injuries & Compartment Syndromes

33. Compromised Grafts and Flaps:
Supports marginally perfused or oxygenated tissue and improves development of granulation tissue while supporting marginally perfused tissue. Accelerates angiogenesis Hyperoxygenation Vasoconstriction Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity CPG: H02.02

34. Failing Graft Treated with HBO:
Pre-HBO
Post HBO

35. Delayed Radiation Injuries (Soft Tissue and Bony Necrosis):
Soft tissue radionecrosis (STRN) or osteoradionecrosis (ORN). Progressive obliterative endarteritis. HBO essential in overall treatment plan. Hyperoxygenation Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity. Vasoconstriction CPG: H02.05

36. STRN and Failing Flap:
Pre-HBO
Post HBO

37. Radiation Cystitis:
Cystoscopy Pre-HBO

38. Radiation Cystitis:
Cystoscopy Post 60 HBOT

39. Radiation Proctitis:
Pre-HBO
60 Days Post HBO (30 txs)

40. ORN of the Mandible:
Pre-HBO
Post HBO (30 txs)

41. Necrotizing Soft Tissue Infections:
Mixed flora infections (including Fungal) Hypoxic wounds in host compromised patients. Primary treatment is surgery and antibiotics, with HBO used adjunctively. Demarcate potentially viable from non-viable tissue, pre-operatively. Hyperoxygenation Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity Vasoconstriction CPG: H02.07

42. Necrotizing Soft Tissue Infections:

43. Clostridial Myonecrosis: (Gas Gangrene)
Signs and symptoms include rapid, fulminating, life and limb threatening infection. Most commonly caused by Clostridium perfingens. HBO is adjunctive to aggressive surgical debridement. Hyperoxygenation. Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity. Vasoconstriction Halt production of alpha toxin. DCS CPG: H02.08

44. Gas Gangrene:

45. Intracranial Abscess:
Relieves hypoxia and augment treatment of concomitant skull necrosis. Reduces peri-focal brain edema and enhance host defenses and augment treatment of anaerobic flora.
Hyperoxygenation
Vasoconstriction.
Enhanced Antimicrobial Activity
CPG: H03.05 (pending)

46. Intracranial Abscess

47. Questions?

48. Decompression Sickness:
Formation of inert gas bubbles in bloodstream and tissue during decompression.
Occludes blood vessels and can compress nerves.
Symptoms can be subtle and diverse.
Treatment of choice is HBO.
Direct pressure
Hyperoxygenation
Vasoconstriction
DCS CPG: H03.03 (US Navy TT5 or TT6)

49. O2 and fibroblast replication / collagen synthesis:
Fibroblast replication is normal within the range of mmHg PO2. Any degree of hypoxia below this range slows it and reduces the potential for collagen synthesis.
The maximum rate of collagen production is at approximately 250 mmHg which is beyond the normal oxygen tension in a wound. At this level 90% of fibroblast are functioning at full capacity at 2.0 ata.
Fibroblasts cannot synthesize or deposit collagen in the absence of molecular oxygen or in a BGL > 200 mg/dL.