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ODESSA, TEXAS. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HOT) is a procedure for delivering high concentrations of
pure oxygen to the body. It involves breathing 100% oxygen through a mask while inside a pressurized
chamber. The added pressure causes the oxygen to be dissolved in the blood. HOT has been used to
successfully treat a variety of conditions from osteomyelitis to pressure ulcers and necrotizing fascitis. It is
particularly effective in speeding wound healing.
Cardiologists at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center decided to see if HOT would decrease the
rate of restenosis after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) such as angioplasty, stent implantation
and atherectomy (removal of plaque from coronary arteries). They reasoned that restenosis (reclosing of
opened arteries) is likely caused by the healing of miniature wounds created in blood vessel walls during the
PCI. If these wounds could be healed quicker, restenosis might be avoided. They randomly assigned 24
patients to receive two 90-minute HOT treatments after the PCI while another 37 patients served as the
control group. All patients had been admitted with a heart attack or unstable angina. After an 8-month
follow-up the researchers had to do a repeat PCI on 8 patients (22%) in the control group because of
restenosis (vessel diameter narrowing in excess of 50%). None of the patients in the HOT group showed
signs of restenosis and no repeat procedures were required. Angina recurred in 9 control group patients
(24%) within 8 months as compared to only 1 patient (4%) in the HOT group. The Texas cardiologists
conclude that HOT is safe and may be associated with a reduction in restenosis and recurrence of angina
after PCI.
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