Oxygen treatment is considered to be a cornerstone of medical care. Its efficacy lies in providing relief in tissue hypoxia, resulting in pain reduction and tissue regeneration.[1] People are now increasingly gravitating towards using portable hyperbaric chambers, also called HBO, in offices and healthcare facilities due to their various health benefits. LED Light Therapy already has a wide range of applications in healthcare. Since research has shown promising results when both methods are used together, we have proposed using LED pads inside portable hyperbaric chambers to achieve the best results.
Why are People Turning to Portable HBO Chambers?
A full-fledged hyperbaric chamber is essentially a high-pressure environment and can only be safely accessed at a facility equipped with the system. Moreover, some patients may be claustrophobic or have other illnesses that might make the treatment contraindicated. In these instances, portable HBO chambers provide a safe alternative.
Are Portable Hyperbaric Chambers Good Enough?
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy helps increase oxygen levels and is a popular treatment. The treatment is cleared by the FDA for 13 conditions. However, healthcare practitioners suspect that portable hyperbaric chambers are not as effective when compared to full-fledged ones. This is due to the fact that the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) recommends using a chamber pressurized to a minimum of 2 ATA with 100% Oxygen.[2] However, a portable hyperbaric chamber can have a maximum pressure of 1.3 ATA only. Since combining the two treatments has shown positive results, conjunction of LED and HBO can truly boost the performance of a portable HBO chamber.[3]
Is LED Light Therapy Effective?
Photobiomodulation has been used to treat medical conditions for decades and is now becoming a mainstream treatment method.[4] Light Emitting Diodes are among the most preferred light sources for biosimulation due to several reasons: they can be configured and customized to produce the wavelength suitable for a certain condition, and they can be arranged in flat arrays to help target larger surface area.[5] LED Light Therapy is an FDA-cleared treatment method, as they are deemed a nonsignificant risk by the FDA and are cleared for use on humans.[6]
How Would an HBO Chamber with LED Pads Work?
Using LED pads inside HBO chambers might seem like an impossible feat due to the presence of wires. The question arises, where would the wires be plugged since they need a power source? We have produced two solutions for this problem: Slight modifications in the chambers would allow the wires to be placed outside from where they can be plugged into a power outlet. Another solution is the use of USB cables, which would allow one to connect the LED pads to a rechargeable power source inside the chamber, eliminating the need for the wires to be placed outside of the chamber.
What Does Research Say about LED + HBO Therapy?
The efficacy of LED therapy as an adjunct to Hyperbaric Oxygen treatment (HBO) for the treatment of hypoxic and ischemic conditions is well-established in the medical literature.[7] LED, in conjunction with HBO, has been shown to increase cell growth, promote healing, and treat chronic pain.
During wound healing, LED Therapy has been shown to increase cellular activity, which includes enhanced collagen production and angiogenesis.[8] HBO has similar benefits as well and is generally used as standard therapy for radiation necrosis, graft failures, diabetic ulcers, and other ischemic wounds.
LED + Hyperbaric Oxygen for Treating Chronic Wounds and Pain
One study, conducted on an animal model of an ischemic wound, studied the effects of the combination of HBO and LED. Wounds were traced for almost 14 days to assess healing.[9] The results concluded that, compared to HBO only, the combination of HBO and LED had a greater effect on wound healing and pain management. This synergy of the two treatments is due to their combined counter-hypoxic effects, which resulted in accelerated healing.
Another trial was done on a 55-year-old female patient who had a lesion on her left breast.[10] The study investigated the effects of hyperbaric oxygen and LEDs on wound management and healing. After some weeks of treatment, the patient reported relief from pain and improvement in skin integrity.
Foot ulcers are a common complication of diabetes without significant treatment options. One study investigated the effects of both Hyperbaric Oxygen treatment and LED therapy on diabetic foot ulcers.[11] The results concluded that among patients receiving this treatment combination, the chances of amputation decreased up to 4-times when compared to patients who didn’t receive the treatment.
Pairing hyperbaric oxygen therapy with LED can have significant benefits, especially when it comes to wound healing and infection. This treatment method is an inexpensive and simple procedure and can easily be adopted by healthcare professionals due to the treatment being non-invasive and almost side effect-free.
We, at Energia Medical, offer a wide range of FDA-Registered LED pads that can be used in hyperbaric oxygen chambers to get the best of both worlds. You can choose between many size variations, such as whole body and half body and smaller size variations to suit your needs. For more information, contact us, and we would be happy to help.
Citations
[1] Sjöberg F, Singer M. The medical use of oxygen: a time for critical reappraisal. J Intern Med. 2013 Dec;274(6):505-28. doi: 10.1111/joim.12139. PMID: 24206183.
[2] Ortega MA, Fraile-Martinez O, García-Montero C, Callejón-Peláez E, Sáez MA, Álvarez-Mon MA, García-Honduvilla N, Monserrat J, Álvarez-Mon M, Bujan J, Canals ML. A General Overview on the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: Applications, Mechanisms and Translational Opportunities. Medicina (Kaunas). 2021 Aug 24;57(9):864. doi: 10.3390/medicina57090864. PMID: 34577787; PMCID: PMC8465921.
[3] Marques, Cristiane Ribeiro S. et al. “The use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and LED therapy in diabetic foot.” SPIE BiOS (2004).
[4] Karu T. Is it time to consider photobiomodulation as a drug equivalent? Photomed Laser Surg. 2013 May;31(5):189-91. doi: 10.1089/pho.2013.3510. Epub 2013 Apr 19. PMID: 23600376; PMCID: PMC3643261.
[5] Whelan, H.T.; Houle, J.M.; Donohoe, D.L.; Bajic, D.M.; Schmidt, M.H.; Reichert, K.W. et al. Medical Applications of Space Light-Emitting Diode Technology–Space Station and Beyond, report, June 1, 1999; Oak Ridge, Tennessee. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc895711/: accessed October 30, 2022), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
[6] Whelan, Harry T et al. “The NASA light-emitting diode medical program—progress in space flight and terrestrial applications.” arXiv: Mathematical Physics 504 (2000): 37-43.
[7] Cristiane Ribeiro S. Marques, Airton Abrahao Martin, Carlos J. Lima, Luis Augusto L. Conrado, Fabricio L. Silveira, Marcos Vinicius Carvalho, “The use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and LED therapy in diabetic foot,” Proc. SPIE 5312, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIV, (13 July 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.528233
[8] Whelan, Harry T. “The Use of NASA Light-Emitting Diode Near-Infrared Technology for Biostimulation.” (2002).
[9] Whelan HT, Smits RL Jr, Buchman EV, Whelan NT, Turner SG, Margolis DA, Cevenini V, Stinson H, Ignatius R, Martin T, Cwiklinski J, Philippi AF, Graf WR, Hodgson B, Gould L, Kane M, Chen G, Caviness J. Effect of NASA light-emitting diode irradiation on wound healing. J Clin Laser Med Surg. 2001 Dec;19(6):305-14. doi: 10.1089/104454701753342758. PMID: 11776448.
[10] Brown, B., Baines, C., & Mann, L. (2011). Oxygen and Omnilux in wound healing: A course of hyperbaric oxygen precedes a course of light-emitting diodes to aid the healing of a lower lumbar soft-tissue radiation injury. Wound Practice & Research: Journal of the Australian Wound Management Association, 19(3), 166–170. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.628299086250390
[11] Cristiane Ribeiro S. Marques, Airton Abrahao Martin, Carlos J. Lima, Luis Augusto L. Conrado, Fabricio L. Silveira, Marcos Vinicius Carvalho, “The use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and LED therapy in diabetic foot,” Proc. SPIE 5312, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIV, (13 July 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.528233
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