What Researchers Did
Researchers retrospectively reviewed 25 calciphylaxis patients treated over 10 years at a Norwegian hospital where HBOT was integrated into a multidisciplinary care protocol including sodium thiosulphate, dialysis, wound care, and nutritional optimization.
What They Found
Patients received a median of 45 HBOT sessions (range 1 to 267). One year after diagnosis, 18 of 25 patients (72%) were alive, and 15 of the 18 survivors had completely resolved wound lesions. Seven patients died within the first year from cardiovascular disease and infection.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
Calciphylaxis is a devastating wound condition in patients with kidney failure, carrying very high mortality. The 72% one-year survival and near-complete wound healing in survivors represents a substantially better outcome than typically reported without HBOT. Canadian kidney disease patients developing painful skin ulcers should discuss HBOT with their nephrologist.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified.
Study Limitations
The absence of a concurrent control group makes it impossible to determine how much of the benefit is attributable to HBOT versus the overall multidisciplinary approach.