Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Stroke

Every year, about 795,000 people suffer from a stroke in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stroke is the the most common cause of serious long-term disability in the country. 

A stroke is caused by a sudden loss of oxygen and blood to the brain. This loss can occur due to a blocked artery, blood clot, buildup in arterial walls or bleeding in the brain. The brain needs a constant flow of oxygen from the bloodstream in order to function. If bloodflow and oxygen are disrupted, injury to the brain can occur within a very short amount of time. If that occurs, certain functions in the body that are controlled by those parts of the brain will stop or be hindered. It can take months or years to regain those proper functions and some patients experience permanent damage.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is a noninvasive and painless therapy that helps improve bloodflow and the delivery of oxygen to tissues in the brain damaged by stroke.
During HBOT sessions, patients are administered 100 percent oxygen at greater than normal atmospheric pressure. This floods the body with oxygen and helps reduce swelling and stimulate healing in those damaged areas of the brain through the formation of new blood vessels. 

Although HBOT (or any other known treatment) cannot revive dead tissue that resulted from a stroke, it is extremely beneficial for improving function in the area between the damaged tissue and the unaffected brain (known as the pnumbra). After a stroke, the pnumbra contains brain cells that are in a resting state because they are not receiving proper bloodflow and oxygen. HBOT awakens those cells by helping to achieve adequate bloodflow.