A team of mathematicians at QUT, Australia, have modelled the use of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy to heal chronic wounds caused by diabetes complications . The diabetes news is particularly important – with a diabetes patient losing a limb every 30 seconds to amputation .
HBOT is intermittent exposure of the body to pure oxygen under intense pressure. A team at the Institute of Health and Biomedical innovation modelled the therapy and found that it increased the healing process.
Jennifer Flegg reportedly commented: “The investigation showed that HBOT applied intermittently under pressure to a diabetic wound speeds up its healing. Our modelling showed firstly that only HBOT, and not oxygen applied with no extra pressure, stimulates healing of these chronic wounds. We also found that HBOT must be continued until the wound has completely healed in order for it to be effective.”
She reportedly continued: “However, we found that individual wounds need to be treated differently. Each patient has different healing capacities with HBOT and so our modelling shows that there should be a research focus on individual treatment protocols in order to optimize the outcome for each patient.”

Get our free newsletters

Stay up to date with the latest news, research and breakthroughs.