Treatment of COVID-19 patients in portable hyperbaric chambers

23.10.2020
Vitality

“To date, there is no vaccine and no specific antiviral medicine shown to be effective in preventing or treating COVID-19.”

These days we are facing a rapid spread of the corona virus around the world. As national health systems are overburdened, one cannot overlook the possibility of adjunctive therapies for the infected patients.

Paganini and Bosco (2020) have prepared a summary that “illustrates the biological mechanisms of action of increased O2 pressure, hoping to clarify more appropriate protocols and more useful application of HBO in COVID-19 treatment.”

There are already some studies published about the positive effects of hyperbaric oxygen treatment (HBOT) on COVID-19 patients, showing improved survival rate and success in preventing mechanical ventilation (Guo, UHMS, 2020, Thibodeaux, UHMS, 2020). The hyperbaric medicine researchers are doing the studies on pressures from 1.5 to 3.0 ATA, so to obtain therapeutic effects of HBOT (Paganini and Bosco, 2020).

 

The hyperbaric medicine researchers are doing the studies in available multiplace hyperbaric chamber with more patients on a treatment at the same time.

There are many hospitals in Europe with multiplace hyperbaric chambers where we encounter the issue of disinfection and transport of patients to the chamber. In a multiplace chamber there are many patients on a treatment at the same time. If we are treating the infected ones only, the chamber is not available to other patients that require treatment as well. There is an issue of transportation of patients in the hospital, from ICU or “infected” departments to the hyperbaric chamber. As the patients are infected it is very difficult to transport them from the “infected” department through non-infected hospital’s department, they need to wear the protected clothing, the personnel needed to transport them, … From the disinfection point and control of infectious diseases or cross-contamination between patients, it is much easier to operate a monoplace chamber than a multiplace chamber. One of the solutions would be to have a portable monoplace hyperbaric chamber available to move it around the hospital, to bring the hyperbaric chamber directly to the patient, where and when needed, to ICU or oncology or trauma department etc. The solution shall encompass the self-sufficient hyperbaric system that could be used anywhere. In case the hospitals are overwhelmed with patients, there will be a need to open other places to take care of the patients. In such places, a mobile high pressure medical hyperbaric system can be very effective.

 

We cannot overlook a need for a hyperbaric oxygen treatment for medical personnel. They are working very hard in the front lines and could also benefit from the usage of the monoplace hyperbaric chamber (that would be placed in a non-contagious place only for them).

 

Many researchers believe that there is a shortage and a great need for centers in Europe with monoplace hyperbaric chambers that enable personalized and customized HBOT so to easier manage the spread of the new corona virus. At this moment there is only one portable hyperbaric chamber on the market, which is medically certified and reaches a pressure of 2.0 ata. This is AHA medical hyperbaric chamber, which we have developed, patented and are selling worldwide. Most portable chambers on the market are not medically certified and achieve lower non-therapeutic pressure, which is currently not used in clinical studies in the case of HBOT and COVID-19. AHA Hyperbarics is strongly supporting researchers in their efforts to prove the effectiveness of HBOT in the treatment of COVID-19 disease.

 

Sources:

  • https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343100873_The_Role_of_Hyperbaric_Oxygen_Treatment_for_COVID-19_A_Review
  • Evidence Review for HBO2 Treatment of COVID-19 Webinar, UHMS, 2020.