What Researchers Did
Researchers surveyed all 12 Australian and New Zealand hyperbaric units to compare how they actually treat central retinal artery occlusion — sudden vision loss from a blocked eye artery — against official UHMS guidelines.
What They Found
Over five years, 146 CRAO cases were treated across the 12 units. The biggest gap between actual practice and guidelines was treatment pressure: 69% of units used 284 kPa (about 2.8 ATA) rather than the pressure specified in the UHMS guidelines. Very few units strictly followed the official protocol in full.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
For Canadians experiencing sudden painless vision loss — a medical emergency with only an 8% chance of spontaneous recovery — this study highlights the need to reach an HBOT facility quickly, and that a simplified practical protocol may be as effective as the complex guideline-based one. Time to treatment is the most critical factor.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified. CRAO is not currently listed as an OHIP-covered HBOT indication in Ontario, though it is recognized as an emergency indication by UHMS.
Study Limitations
This survey reflects practices in Australia and New Zealand only and does not measure patient outcomes, so it cannot confirm whether variations in protocol affected visual recovery rates.