Effects of Normobaric Hyperoxia in Severe Acute Stroke: a Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial Study

Oxygen therapy might increase damaged tissue oxygenation, turn on the aerobic pathway, and save neurons from death and could improve clinical outcome of the patients with stroke and head trauma. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is accompanied by some unfavorable effects. Results of normobaric oxygen therapy on clinical outcomes of patients with stroke were controversial up till now.  This study was therefore designed to evaluate effects of normobaric hyperoxia on clinical outcomes of patients with severe acute stroke. A total of 52 consecutive patients with stroke who meet the inclusion criteria of the study were entered into this randomized controlled clinical trial. The patients in the case group underwent oxygen therapy with Venturi mask for first 12 hours of admission. The patients were examined for neurologic defects at the time of discharge and after six months using both Barthel and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) neurologic disability scoring systems. There was no significant sex difference between the two groups (P=0.5). There was no statistically significant difference between ischemic-hemorrhagic stroke constitutions of two groups (P=0.2). There were no significant difference in Barthel index scores of both groups at the time of discharge as well as the follow-up examination (P=0.7) According to the mRS scoring system, there was no difference between the patients of both groups at the time of admission (P= 0.8), however after treatment there was a significant difference between mRS scores of the treated group compared to the controls (P=0.04). According to the results of this study, normobaric oxygen therapy in the first 12 hours of accident could improve long time outcome of the patients with either ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke.