Litigation

Can hyperbaric oxygen therapy be used in the treatment of traumatic brain injury?

By Michael Kaplen

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment has for many years been a controversial subject in regard to the treatment of both mild and severe brain injuries.  Although studies examining the efficacy of this treatment have been done in the past, they have all lacked scientific merit and have failed to answer the question about its effectiveness.

Now the Department of Defense is again looking at hyperbaric oxygen therapy as a means of treating brain injury.  A new clinical trial, which is expected to begin in January 2011, will attempt to answer questions regarding the usefulness of this type of treatment. 

The study, conducted by the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury in Virginia, and the Army Research and Materiel Command in Maryland, is expected to run for at least 18 months.

According to the, said Col. Richard Ricciardi, director of the research evaluation and quality assurance and surveillance directorate at Defense Centers of Excellence the study will include about 300 participants, mostly soldiers and Marines, and will build upon other ongoing studies on TBI treatment.

Full post as published by Brain Injury News and Information on March 31, 2010 (boomark / email).