What Researchers Did
Researchers studied whether a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy, given alongside standard treatment, affected heart-relaxation function and blood oxygen levels in patients with diabetic foot syndrome and metabolic syndrome.
What They Found
This clinical study of 32 patients with diabetic foot syndrome (8 at stage I, 24 at stage II) and metabolic syndrome, compared against 20 healthy controls, found changes in heart diastolic function and blood oxygenation after a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. The ratio of early- to late-diastolic filling rates was 24.48% lower in the study group than in controls (p less than 0.05). Iso-volumetric relaxation time increased by 21.02%, and slowing of early diastolic filling increased by 7.26% (p less than 0.05 for both). Arterial blood oxygen saturation rose 4.1% after the hyperbaric oxygen sessions compared to baseline, and venous blood saturation rose from 52.64% to 58.25%. The hyperbaric oxygen protocol used 100% oxygen at 1.7 to 1.8 ATA, with 10-minute compression and decompression periods, 40 to 60 minutes at pressure, over a total of 8 to 10 sessions.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
For patients managing diabetic foot syndrome alongside metabolic syndrome, this study suggests that left ventricular diastolic function and blood oxygen levels can change during a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy given as part of complex treatment. The abstract does not report on wound healing outcomes or long-term cardiac results, so it does not show whether these measured changes translate into better clinical outcomes.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified.
Study Limitations
The study involved a small sample of 32 patients with no mention of randomization or blinding, and it measured cardiac and oxygenation markers rather than long-term clinical outcomes like wound healing or cardiovascular events.