What Researchers Did
Authors from the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) summarized the evidence for using HBOT as an adjunct treatment for intracranial abscesses, including brain abscess, subdural empyema, and epidural empyema.
What They Found
Intracranial abscesses are life-threatening infections with roughly 30-50% caused by direct spread from nearby ear, sinus, or dental infections and about one-third from blood-borne spread. The chapter outlines how HBOT fits as an add-on to antibiotics and surgery, given its ability to increase oxygen delivery to infected tissue and its direct antimicrobial effects under pressure.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
For Canadians with a rare but dangerous brain infection unresponsive to standard treatment, HBOT may provide additional benefit as an add-on therapy. Patients or families dealing with refractory brain abscess should ask the treating neurosurgeon whether HBOT is available at their center or a nearby referral hospital.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified.
Study Limitations
This is a reprinted guideline chapter rather than an original research study, so it reflects expert opinion and existing evidence synthesis rather than new primary data.