The effect of hyperbaric oxygen therapy on improving bony stability in LeFort I maxillary advancement

The present study was designed to investigate the effect of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO2T) on improving bony stability in LeFort I maxillofacial surgery.

Sixteen cases (n = 16) with severe skeletal anteroposterior discrepancies and who had ceased growing were used as subjects. The samples were categorized into two groups: Group A comprised one-piece LeFort I procedures with HBO2T administered seven days after surgery (n = 8), and Group B comprised the same surgical procedure without HBO2T (n = 8). Lateral cephalometric radiographs were taken for each subject to record the occurrence of bony relapse: prior to surgery (T1); seven days after surgery (T2); and a third (T3) taken 12 months after surgery. Each patient underwent preoperative and postoperative full-fixed orthodontic treatment. The first group was administered HBO2T for 60 minutes, at 2.5 ATA (atmospheres absolute) for five consecutive days after the T2 stage, and the second group served as a control, as they had not received HBO2T. For both groups the mean values of T1 stages were calculated and compared to those of T2 and T3 stages in the same group.

Comparison between the two groups regarding the percentage of change in measurements at T2 and at T3 showed that there were significant differences between groups in all measurements at T3. In the HBO2T group, there was no statistical significant difference in all parameters between the mean values of T2 and T3, indicating minor or no relapse. Meanwhile in the group without HBO2T, there was a highly significant statistical difference in the mean values between T2 and T3 in all studied parameters, indicating significant relapse.

It is suggested that administration of hyperbaric oxygen therapy may aid in the postoperative stability of orthognathic LeFort I surgical corrections of patients with severe dentofacial deformities.