One of the least known indications of Hyperbaric Medicine is its application in children with cerebral palsy.
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This is a general term that describes a series of neurological disorders that present children who have suffered fetal distress at birth, as a result of which their brains remain oxygen-deficient for some time and are responsible for the disease. It’s called anoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy.
The manifestations presented by these children are diverse and of different intensity, depending on the brain area affected, and may range from hearing or vision problems, motor and postural alterations and cognitive and thinking deficits, generally associated with a delay in maturation.
The classic treatment of these children has included physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and medication of different nature.
Hyperbaric oxygen is an excellent therapeutic measure. It has been shown that the damaged areas of these children are in a state of metabolic penumbra, that is, their neurons are inactive but alive, it is a potentially recoverable tissue.
Similarly, we work with children with autism, which is a group of clinical situations in which these children limit their mental activity, making social interaction difficult, in addition to presenting a delay in the development of their cognitive functions. The treatment of these children with HBO has demonstrated a considerable improvement of them, which is verified every day by their parents and social environment.
Since the beginning of our assistance activity, our team, very sensitive to these patients and their families, has specialized in neurological hyperbaric oxygen therapy. At this moment we are a reference clinic in the treatment of these pathologies with HBO. We currently treat a considerable number of children from different European countries, who come to our clinic. In fact, being exclusive in this therapy makes us have an important demand, so we have to study each case before we can make an appointment for consultation, for which the family sends us the clinical history, from which our medical service studies the particular case and maintains contact via email with the family before deciding the suitability of the treatment in that particular patient. Once it is estimated that the child can be treated by us, an appointment is made for consultation and, if necessary, treatment is scheduled.
