Multiple Sclerosis and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Studies

During the 1970s, researchers from four European countries described several benefits they’d noticed while treating multiple sclerosis with hyperbaric oxygen. In 1975, Dr. Richard Neubauer, a worldwide authority on HBOT, used the therapy to treat an MS patient suffering from bone inflammation (osteomyelitis) at Fort Lauderdale’s Ocean Medical Center. In addition to bringing down the inflammation, HBOT and hyperbaric oxygen had an unanticipated benefit: the patients’ other MS symptoms improved. That led to several double-blind scientific studies.

Without successful treatment, 80 percent of those suffering from MS have progressive and deteriorating symptoms. Using both double-blind and longitudinal clinical studies, Dr. Neubauer administered individually-adjusted, hyperbaric oxygen therapy at low pressure (1.3 to 1.5 atmospheres) to his patients with MS. And although 20 to 30 percent of these patients continued to deteriorate, between 70 and 80 percent didn’t just stabilize – both their tissue damage and symptoms improved! As a result, the interest in HBOT and hyperbaric oxygen for multiple sclerosis grew.

Studies Continued to Show Positive Results

In 1986, Neubauer and Kagan demonstrated that 11 out of 35 MS patients’ lesions disappeared after just one hour of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. At three separate international conferences, Neubauer, Kagan, and Gottlieb presented research showing that MRI tests had confirmed a statistically significant reduction in both the number and size of lesions in MS patients who had HBOT, versus those who did not.

HBOT and Multiple Sclerosis Treatments

 

 

When the blood-brain barrier sustains an injury, brain tissues swell and impede O2 delivery, leading to loss of function. With this in mind, hyperbaric oxygen therapy pushes oxygen deep into areas that the circulatory system can’t reach. This permits the blood-brain-barrier and its underlying tissues to heal and restores the nervous system’s ability to accurately relay messages. How effective HBOT can be for MS depends on whether injured cells have truly died or whether the cells remain dormant but viable. Treatments for multiple sclerosis with hyperbaric oxygen therapy early produces the best results, while the brain’s potential to restore lost function is the greatest. Even though HBOT cannot help everyone with MS, it’s important to remember that even chronic MS patients have experienced dramatic improvements.

 

What is Multiple Sclerosis?

Multiple sclerosis is a disease of the nervous system that affects the brain and the spinal cord. It attacks the myelin sheath, which is the protective material around nerve cells. The destruction of this sheath disrupts the signals between the brain and the body. The cause of MS is unknown, but it is considered an immune-mediated disease. With an immune-mediated disease, the body’s immune system attacks healthy cells and, in the case of MS, the myelin sheath of the nerves.

MS symptoms typically surface between the ages of 20 and 40 and occur more often in women than men. An odd risk factor for MS is one’s latitude. Specifically, people living farther from the Equator have a higher risk factor for developing the disease. There are four different types of MS and the symptoms and progression of the disease are dependent on the amount of nerve damage and which nerves are affected.

Different Types of Multiple Sclerosis

There are four different types of Multiple Sclerosis and each type is determined by the way the disease affects the body. These four types include:

• Relapsing-Remitting MS (RRMS) – RRMS is the most common form of MS, with 85 percent of MS patients receiving this diagnosis. It is characterized by clear attacks, termed relapses or exacerbations. A period of recovery or remission follows each attack. During these remissions, all symptoms may completely disappear until the next attack or some may remain and become permanent.
• Secondary-Progressive MS (SPMS) – Secondary-Progressive is like RRMS in that there are periods of relapses and remission, however, SPMS patients have progressively worsening symptoms and neurologic function. As many as 60 to 70 percent of RRMS patients eventually progress to SPMS.
• Primary-Progressive MS (PPMS) – Primary-Progressive MS features continual worsening neurologic function without any relapses or remission. Only 15 percent of MS patients are diagnosed with PPMS.
• Progressive-Relapsing MS (PRMS) – Progressive-Relapsing MS is a rare form of the disease, affecting only five percent of MS patients. This form features worsening neurologic function with periods of relapses. During these relapses, the symptoms do not go away, but the disease does not progress.

 

Symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis

Symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis vary between patients and are dependent on the location of the damaged nerve fibers. Common symptoms include:

• Numbness or weakness in the legs or truck
• Partial or complete loss of vision
• Double vision
• Tingling or nerve pain
• Lhermitte’s sign – an electric-shock-like sensation that occurs when the neck is moved.
• Muscle tremors
• Lack of coordination, dizziness, or an unsteady gait
• Problems with Speech
• Severe Fatigue
• Muscle Spasticity
• Problems with bladder and bowel function
• Mood alterations

There is no cure for MS and treatments focus on slowing the progression and treating the symptoms. During MS attacks, corticosteroids or plasmapheresis work to reduce the duration of the attacks and return the patient to a remission stage. To slow the progression of the disease, doctors prescribe various disease-modifying drugs and immunosuppressants. Physical therapy helps to strengthen muscles affected by the disease, as well as help to adjust to daily life. Muscle relaxants can help reduce muscle spasticity and other medications target depression, pain, and bladder and bowel control problems.

For appointments, call us on 0411963965

Coast Oxygen: 1/12 Campbell Crescent; TERRIGAL 2260

Chris Youakim (Wellness Chiropractor)