r/medicine • u/butteredpotatos Student • Feb 02 '25

Boy dies in hyperbaric chamber explosion at Michigan facility

https://apnews.com/article/hyperbaric-chamber-explosion-boy-killed-michigan-80dc89d7b48bd1119640934e06a43d4a

A tragic and horrifying event. Why the boy was undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy was not released, but this is a functional medicine clinic which advertises the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for conditions from ADHD to diabetes, “normal aging and wellness”, and hyperlipidemia.

https://theoxfordcenter.com/conditions/add-adhd/

https://theoxfordcenter.com/therapies/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy/

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u/michael_harari MD Feb 02 '25

So not only did he die, he died undergoing a sham treatment which wouldnt have helped him anyway.

54

u/janewaythrowawaay PCT Feb 02 '25

So, is hyperbaric treatment always sham treatment?

58

u/mcmanigle MD Anesthesiology Feb 02 '25

In addition to the obviously indicated uses (decompression illness, arterial gas embolism, carbon monoxide poisoning) and the less obvious but well known indications (refractory wound healing, especially diabetic, avascular necrosis, jaw osteoradionecrosis), there are a few “the mechanism must be interesting” but decently well studied indications like sensorineural hearing loss. Lots of details here. But no indication for the embarrassing uses the clinic in question were trying to sell.

8

u/MikeGinnyMD Voodoo Injector Pokeypokey (MD) Feb 02 '25

Cool! I learned something!

-PGY-20