Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is an advanced medical treatment that has been used in both human and veterinary medicine for decades. At Calusa Veterinary Center in Boca Raton, FL, we are grateful to offer this innovative therapy that helps pets recover from wounds, injuries, and chronic conditions that are not healing as expected. If you have a pet dealing with pain, infection, or slow recovery, HBOT might be a treatment option to consider.
What Is Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT)?
HBOT is a specialized therapy available at Calusa Veterinary Center for both dogs and cats. During treatment, your pet is comfortably placed inside a hyperbaric chamber where they breathe 100% pure oxygen under increased atmospheric pressure. This supercharged oxygen supply allows the body to absorb much higher concentrations of oxygen than normal. The extra oxygen stimulates healing by reducing inflammation, repairing tissues, fighting infection, and encouraging new blood vessel growth. HBOT saturates the body's fluids with extra oxygen, enabling it to reach areas with poor blood supply more effectively and speed recovery by delivering much-needed oxygen to the body's most critical areas.
How Does HBOT Work for Pets?
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. In the hyperbaric chamber, your pet gets 100% oxygen, with up to 15–20 times more oxygen dissolved into their bloodstream compared to normal breathing. This means oxygen can reach areas of the body that are otherwise deprived, providing the healing benefits of oxygen to the affected areas.
What Is HBOT Used To Treat in Dogs and Cats?
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy can benefit dogs and cats facing a wide range of conditions, including:
- Wounds, burns, and trauma
- Head and spinal cord injuries
- Post-surgical swelling and inflammation
- Crushing injuries
- Sepsis and severe infections
- Pancreatitis
- Necrosis (tissue death)
- Stroke
- Snake bites, spider bites, and insect envenomation
- Bone infections
- Smoke inhalation or breathing issues
- After cardiopulmonary resuscitation
- Sinusitis and other respiratory conditions
Benefits Of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Dogs and Cats
HBOT provides numerous benefits for dogs and cats, including:
- Wound Healing: Increases oxygen supply to damaged tissues, speeding recovery from wounds, burns, and injuries. This helps prevent infection and promotes faster healing.
- Infection Control: High oxygen levels make it difficult for bacteria to thrive, helping the body fight infection and control dog diseases or common dog illnesses.
- Tissue Repair: Stimulates new blood vessel growth and collagen production, improving mobility and repair for sick pets with chronic conditions.
- Pain Relief: Reduces inflammation and promotes natural healing, providing relief for dogs needing pain management and cats requiring cat pain meds or additional comfort.
- Post-Surgical Recovery: Minimizes swelling, reduces pain, and accelerates healing after surgical procedures by improving oxygenation and circulation to the site.
Results Of HBOT Treatment
Short-Term Results of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Dogs and Cats
After just a few sessions of HBOT at Calusa Veterinary Center, 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. The exact timeline for seeing these short-term results can vary based on the specific condition being treated and its severity.
Long-Term Results of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Dogs and Cats
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 pet is suffering from a wound, injury, or chronic condition that isn't healing properly, schedule a consultation with our team at Calusa Veterinary Center to see if Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is a good option for your pet.