Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is performed by creating an environment with a pressure of more than one atmosphere of pure oxygen. In such an environment, the dissolved oxygen in the patient's blood increases and the oxygen required by the cells is supplied from the dissolved oxygen in the blood.

Are the Hyperbaric Oxygen and Oxygen Therapy the same?

In oxygen therapy, as the share of inhaled oxygen gas increases, the diffusion of oxygen from the alveoli to the pulmonary capillaries increases. As a result, diffusion problems beyond the alveolocapillary membrane are compensated and oxygen transfer from the alveoles to the capillaries and then via hemoglobin in blood is possible. Oxygen therapy is suitable for acute lung injuries and respiratory failures.    

In hyperbaric oxygen therapy, due to the increase in atmospheric pressure with breathing pure oxygen, dissolved oxygen in the blood is increased, resulting in increased oxygen transfer per 100 cubic centimeters of blood. Therefore high oxygen pressure in the blood causes more oxygen transfer from capillaries to the tissues. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a novel method to treat tissue hypoxia, which is the leading cause of problem wounds.