The Effect of HBOT on Acute Spinal Cord Injury & Disorders Rehabilitation Outcome
Sophia Chun, M.D., VA Long Beach; UC Irvine
Chief, Spinal Cord Injury Center, Veterans Affairs, Long Beach Healthcare System, CA; Asst. Clinical Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, UCI

Efficacies of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for treating a variety of neurological have been demonstrated in animal and human studies in recent years, such as disorders in which blood flow- related oxygenation may be compromised including stroke, head injury and acute and possibly chronic Spinal Cord Injury and other SCI disorders, e.g., multiple sclerosis. There have not been any studies to date on the effectiveness of hyperbaric oxygen therapy during the acute rehabilitation phase of the SCI, i.e. 3 to 18 month post initial injury which is believed to be the window of time when the greatest neurological and functional improvement is expected to occur, and/or when there is a new decline in function requiring acomprehensive inpatient rehabilitation program. The use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy as an adjunct treatment for persons with spinal cord injury during an inpatient acute rehabilitation period is promising and innovative. If positive trends are found using the historical control design, the next phase of the study would be to conduct clinical trials to further prove the benefits of hyperbaric oxygen therapy during the acute SCI rehabilitation phase of the recovery process.

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