Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is a medical treatment that has been used for decades to help patients recover from a variety of conditions. If your pet is suffering from a wound, injury, or chronic condition that isn't healing properly, HBOT may be a valuable solution that can be added as adjuvant care.
What Is HBOT?
HBOT is an advanced medical treatment that Calusa Veterinary Center offers to aid in healing for dogs and cats. During HBOT, your pet enters a specialized chamber and breathes 100% pure oxygen at increased atmospheric pressure. This allows their body to absorb a much higher concentration of life-giving oxygen than is possible under normal conditions. The increased oxygen levels help stimulate the natural healing processes by promoting new blood vessel growth, reducing inflammation, fighting infections, and repairing damaged tissues. HBOT saturates the body's fluids with this extra oxygen, allowing it to reach areas with poor blood supply more effectively to speed recovery.
How Does HBOT Work?
During an HBOT session at Calusa Veterinary Center, your dog or cat is placed in a specially designed chamber pressurized with 100% pure oxygen. As the pressure in the chamber increases to higher than normal atmospheric levels, this "hyperbaric" environment allows the oxygen to be more easily dissolved into the pet's bloodstream. Their body can then transport and deliver this highly oxygenated blood to areas with reduced circulation and oxygen deprivation, such as injured tissues or infection sites. The increased oxygen levels help fight bacteria, reduce swelling, promote new blood vessel formation, and accelerate the healing process.
The air we normally breathe contains less than 21% oxygen. However, in the hyperbaric chamber, the pressure allows for the concentration of oxygen to reach 100%, with up to 15-20 times more oxygen being dissolved into the bloodstream compared to breathing regular air. This increased oxygenation can penetrate areas where circulation is compromised or blocked, providing the healing benefits of oxygen to the affected areas.
What Is HBOT Used To Treat?
- Wounds/burns/trauma
- Head/spinal cord trauma injuries
- Post-surgical swelling and inflammation
- Crushing injuries
- Sepsis
- Pancreatitis
- Necrosis
- Stroke
- Snake/spider bites and insect envenomation
- Bone infection
- Smoke inhalation
- Post cardiopulmonary resuscitation
- Sinusitis and much more
Benefits Of HBOT
HBOT provides a range of benefits for animals, including:
- Wound Healing: HBOT increases the amount of oxygen available to damaged tissues, which helps speed up the healing process for wounds and burns. The increased oxygen reduces the risk of infection and promotes faster healing.
- Infection Control: The high oxygen levels reached during HBOT make it difficult for bacteria and other pathogens to thrive since some grow best in low-oxygen environments. This helps kill off harmful infectious organisms.
- Tissue Repair: HBOT stimulates the growth of new blood vessels and increases collagen production, which aids in repairing damaged tissues. This can improve mobility for animals with injuries or chronic conditions.
- Pain Relief: Oxygen therapy reduces inflammation and promotes tissue repair, which can alleviate pain and discomfort for the animal patient.
- Post-Surgical Healing: HBOT minimizes swelling and aids recovery after surgical procedures by improving oxygenation and circulation to the operative site.
Results Of HBOT Treatment
Short-Term Results
After just a few sessions of HBOT, most animal patients may begin to experience short-term benefits. These can include increased energy levels, improved appetite no, and a noticeable reduction in pain or discomfort. Swelling may also subside, and circulation can improve in the first week of treatment. For animals being treated for wounds or infections, a decrease in inflammation and promotion of the healing process may be evident after the initial HBOT sessions. However, the exact timeline for seeing these short-term results can vary based on the specific condition being treated and its severity.
Long-Term Results
While short-term improvements are encouraging, the full benefits of HBOT often take weeks or even months to manifest. This is because the therapy works at a cellular level to facilitate healing, which is a gradual process. With consistent treatment over a full course of HBOT sessions, many pet owners report significant long-term results. This may include markedly improved mobility, a substantial reduction in inflammation, better management of chronic conditions, and an overall higher quality of life and wellness for their animal. As damaged tissues are repaired and new blood vessels form, the increased oxygen circulation can have compounding positive effects throughout the body over time.
Join the Calusa Veterinary Center Family Today!
If your beloved companion is suffering from a wound, injury, or chronic condition that isn't healing properly, schedule a consultation with our veterinary experts to see if Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is a good option for your pet.