What Researchers Did
Researchers retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of six adult patients diagnosed with spinal osteomyelitis who received hyperbaric oxygen therapy at their institution over a 10-year period.
What They Found
Of the six patients, four with secondary spinal osteomyelitis who received adjunctive HBO therapy remained infection-free during a mean follow-up of 2.9 years. For the two patients with recurrent primary spinal osteomyelitis, HBO therapy achieved infection control in one patient, resulting in an overall infection cure rate of 5 out of 6 patients.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may offer a beneficial adjunctive treatment option for Canadian patients suffering from spinal osteomyelitis, especially those with comorbidities or recurrent infections. This could potentially improve outcomes for individuals who have not responded to conventional antimicrobial therapies.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection as it was conducted at the authors' institution, which is not in Canada.
Study Limitations
The study's main limitations include its retrospective design and the very small sample size of only six patients.