Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments – the Possible Key to Healing TBI

Austin, TX (Law Firm Newswire) March 15, 2018 – Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects thousands of Americans every year. In 2013 alone, roughly 2.8 million people went to emergency rooms across the nation for treatment for TBI. Between 2000 and 2017, 308,853 American service members sustained mild traumatic brain injuries.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) most of the cases seen in E.R.’s are categorized as mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs). Mild traumatic brain injuries do not result in a coma and people tend to start feeling better within a few weeks. However, at least 20 percent of victims discover that symptoms and other problems can remain for months or even years.

Many of the victims find they are dealing with a variety of unwelcome symptoms, such as cognitive issues, headaches, fatigue and depression. Also referred to as post-concussion syndrome, the multiple and elusive symptoms are incredibly difficult to successfully treat because most short-term remedies do not heal the brain.

“An interesting study has been released that suggests hyperbaric treatment, exposing patients to pure oxygen, would work for TBI sufferers,” says Austin TBI attorney, Brooks Schuelke. “Such treatment would significantly increase the amount of oxygen available for the brain.”

The study, done by Tel Aviv University in Israel, points out that TBI patients do not have enough oxygen to heal the damaged parts of their brains. Researchers, however, remain skeptical of the results presented in this study. Nonetheless, Tel Aviv University’s study may offer those with TBI hope for treatment.

Interestingly, physicians have used compressed air as a treatment since the 17th century. In fact, in 1917, two German inventors used pure oxygen to treat decompression sickness. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of hyperbaric oxygen in treating burns, decompression sickness, non-healing wounds and carbon monoxide poisoning. Within the last ten years, as research remains inconclusive, some U.S. physicians have started to use this method of treatment for TBI patients.

“When a brain is injured, it needs more energy than normal to heal, which makes sense, because the brain trauma affects the blood vessels supplying the brain with oxygen,” Schuelke added. According to the latest Israeli study, the hyperbaric therapy can help those damaged blood vessels return to their full function, even many years later.

The research at Tel Aviv University gives hope that hyperbaric oxygen may be a lifesaving therapy for sports related brain injuries, military engagement TBIs, car accident victims and others.

Learn more at http://www.civtrial.com