What Researchers Did
Researchers used a US national hospital database of 60,481 patients treated for necrotizing soft tissue infections (flesh-eating disease) from 2012 to 2020 to compare outcomes between patients who received HBOT and those who did not.
What They Found
Only 600 patients (less than 1%) received HBOT. After adjusting for patient differences, HBOT was associated with 78% lower odds of death (Adjusted Odds Ratio 0.22), 27% lower risk of amputation, and lower rates of discharge to a care facility rather than home. HBOT patients had longer hospital stays by 1.6 days and higher costs by $7,800 on average.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified. Necrotizing soft tissue infections are a serious Canadian health issue, and some Canadian hyperbaric centres treat this condition.
Study Limitations
This is a retrospective database study, so patients who received HBOT may have been selected based on factors not fully captured in the data, and the less-than-1% HBOT rate may reflect availability bias.