Study J Transl Med 2018

Increased circulating endothelial progenitor cells and improved short-term outcomes in acute non-cardioembolic stroke after hyperbaric oxygen therapy

Chen C, Wu R, Tsai N, Lee M, Lin W, Hsu M, et al. — J Transl Med, 2018

View Original on PubMed PMID 30208940

Tier 2, Indexed

Automatically imported from PubMed based on relevance criteria.

Summary

What Researchers Did

Researchers prospectively evaluated 25 patients with acute non-cardioembolic stroke treated with HBOT, measuring circulating endothelial progenitor cell counts, oxidative stress markers, and clinical neurological scores before and after treatment, comparing to 25 matched controls.

What They Found

After HBOT, circulating KDR+/CD34+ endothelial progenitor cells increased significantly. High-sensitivity CRP levels decreased significantly. Clinical scores (NIHSS, Barthel Index, modified Rankin Scale) improved, and the increase in endothelial progenitor cells correlated positively with clinical improvement.

Canadian Relevance

No direct Canadian connection identified.

Study Limitations

This was a small case-control study of 25 patients; without randomization, selection bias cannot be excluded, and the causality of the endothelial cell changes for clinical improvement remains unproven.

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Study Details

Study Type	Study
Category	Neurological
Source	Pubmed
PubMed ID	30208940
Year Published	2018
Journal	J Transl Med
MeSH Terms	Biomarkers; Case-Control Studies; Endothelial Progenitor Cells; Female; Humans; Hyperbaric Oxygenation; Male; Middle Aged; Oxidative Stress; Stroke; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome

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Last reviewed: March 19, 2026 | Reviewed by: Canada Hyperbarics Editorial Team | Editorial process | Research sources | Counts & methodology