Does hyperbaric oxygen have a place in the treatment of osteomyelitis?

There are several specific mechanisms by which HBO restores normal cellular processes that are compromised by hypoxia, or by which HBO augments bactericidal events. All of these are potentially applicable to, and beneficial for, the osteomyelitis patient. At the University of Texas Medical Branch, we find that early osteomyelitis is usually amenable to appropriate medical and surgical therapy. Adjunctive HBO is generally reserved for treatment of advanced stages of osteomyelitis (3B and 4B). In addition, HBO is occasionally used when patient circumstances dictate suppression of osteomyelitis rather than definitive treatment. Our clinical impression is that HBO has a beneficial effect on treatment outcome in these selected patients. Fault-free clinical studies are difficult to perform in this complex and varied patient population. Several studies have suggested a beneficial effect with the addition of adjunctive hyperbaric oxygen to usual osteomyelitis treatment regimens, whereas other clinical studies have failed to demonstrate such a benefit. No study has shown any harmful effect of adjunctive HBO on the outcome of osteomyelitis treatment. We hope that clinical researchers will continue to address this question, despite the research design problems inherent in the osteomyelitis population.