Understanding the Efficacy of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Treating Wounds

Natalia Smith30 Sep, 2023Health

Chronic or non-healing wounds may be caused by several factors and may lead to a serious deterioration in the quality of life of the concerned patient. A chronic wound is essentially just a wound that either heals very slowly or does not heal at all, despite the passage of time. Typically, such non-healing or chronic wounds are ulcers associated with poor blood circulation caused by venous or arterial diseases. On the other hand, such chronic and recurring ulcers might also be the result of severe diabetes. In this case, they are called diabetic foot ulcers, which occur when skin tissues break down, exposing the layers underneath. One major characteristic of all non-healing or chronic wounds is that the tissues affected by the wound are almost always hypoxic. In other words, these tissues have lower-than-average oxygen content. This is because such wounds are often caused by poor blood circulation, which leads to a diminished supply of oxygen.