Wound healing and oxygen: what does research say?
Healing tissue needs oxygen. That is the reason hyperbaric medicine has been used in hospitals for slow-healing wounds for decades.
Every step of wound healing, from fighting bacteria to building new collagen and blood vessels, uses oxygen. In wounds with poor blood supply, such as diabetic foot ulcers, hyperbaric oxygen is used in specialised hospital centres alongside regular wound care.
A Cochrane review of twelve trials in people with chronic leg and foot ulcers found that more diabetic foot ulcers had healed after six weeks with HBOT. This difference was not seen at one year, and the reviewers call for larger, well-designed trials. For a wound that does not heal, always see your doctor first.
Good to know: these pages are for information only and are not medical advice. The research described was carried out by the cited researchers, often in hospital settings. Always consult your doctor about health complaints and before starting.
What researchers measured
The studies and data come from the researchers and journals cited, not from OxyBoost. We show them for information only.
- HBOTMeta-analysis2015
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for chronic wounds
Kranke P, et al. · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (2015)
12 trials, 577 people with chronic leg or foot ulcers
A Cochrane review of HBOT added to standard wound care, carried out in hospitals. In diabetic foot ulcers, more ulcers had healed after six weeks with HBOT; this difference was not seen after one year. The reviewers call for larger, well-designed trials.