Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy - Hyperbaric Chamber Information ...

Thirty-seven subjects (comparison group) were allocated to receive 450 mg of
prednisone in 10-mg tablets over 8 days in the following manner: days 1-4, four tablets
twice a day; day 5, three tablets three times a day; day 6, two tablets twice a day; day 7,
one tablet twice a day; and day 8, one tablet. This group was also exposed to a sham
HBOT procedure by placement in a monoplace chamber infused with seven percent
oxygen at 2.8 ATA for one hour, twice a day, five days a week for a maximum of 30
sessions.
The remaining 42 subjects (intervention group) were given placebo tablets and were
instructed to take them in the manner previously described. This group was exposed to
100% oxygen in the same pressures, duration, and frequency as the comparison group.
The authors report (Table 56) that total recovery from paralysis occurred in 40 of 42
(95.2%; 95% CI = 88.8, 100%) patients from the intervention group compared to 28 of
37 (75.7%; 95% CI = 61.8, 89.5%) patients in the comparison group. The average
duration of symptoms was also shorter in the intervention group, as was the proportion
found to be positive on the nerve excitability test. These results were statistically
significant at the 5 percent level.
Table 56 Major outcomes following treatment for facial paralysis in intervention and comparison
groups (Racic et al). 92
Outcome
Intervention
Group (n = 42)
Comparison
Group (n = 37)
Complete recovery (n) 40 28 0.0122
Average duration of symptoms (days) 22 34.4 < 0.001*
Number positive on nerve excitability test (n)
During course of treatment
At nine months
* This value is reported in the text. No standard deviations were given to allow an independent calculation of this probability.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy 57
5
2
9
9
p
0.1492
0.0122
Summary
This report provided some evidence of the benefit of exposure to HBO for subjects with
moderate to severe forms of facial paralysis of less than one week duration. Replication
of this study to other settings and an examination of other outcomes are required to
come to firm and generalisable conclusions.
Sudden deafness and acoustic trauma
Four studies were identified that meet inclusion criteria for this indication. A brief
description of each study is given in Table 57.