Multiple Sclerosis and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

HBOT is the only treatment known to alter the course of Multiple Sclerosis.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a serious, seemingly unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that disrupts communications within the brain and between the brain and body. It occurs when the fatty white substance that protects nerve cells (myelin) gets damaged. The word sclerosis is derived from the Greek skleros,meaning hard. In multiple sclerosis, hard plaques develop in or along multiple nerve fibers. Doctors believe that MS is an autoimmune disease, meaning that a sufferer’s immune system attacks its own tissue – in this case the myelin around brain, spinal cord and optic nerve cells.

You can’t catch MS from others, and it is not fatal. But because MS disrupts the way the nervous system relays messages, its symptoms can be disabling. Those with MS often find it difficult to walk. They also experience pain and problems with vision, as well as odd, pinprick sized skin marks called petechiae that form when blood capillaries beneath the skin start to leak.

Over the past two and a half decades, researchers around the world have conclusively established that HBOT successfully treats MS. In some Western nations, hyperbaric oxygen therapy isn’t only the first course of treatment, but it is also completely covered by insurance. For more than 30 years one English non-profit has provided over 1.5 million HBOT treatments to those with MS!

Today in the United States the FDA has cleared hyperbaric oxygen therapy for use in 14 health conditions, although MS is not among these. And although U.S. researchers continue to dispute its effectiveness, European doctors have used HBOT to successfully treat MS and other conditions for decades. Its effectiveness depends on a number of factors, including:

• total number of treatments and their duration
• type of chamber
• atmospheric pressure
• type of MS diagnosis
• evaluation of results
• administration of follow-up or booster treatments

Controlled studies that follow MS patients over time have shown that regular treatment with hyperbaric oxygen therapy enables them to positively sustain their initial improvements. If you would like to explore HBOT’s benefits for yourself or a loved one with MS, Dr. Spiegel will provide a personalized assessment. Simply click here to schedule a time or call our center at (727) 787-7077.