[Acceleration of postoperative macular edema recovery with hyperbaric oxygen therapy]

In our case study, we present a patient with postoperative macular edema who received hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) as adjunctive treatment. Our study aimed to evaluate the potential therapeutic efficacy of HBOT in accelerating the healing process of postoperative macular edema. A 58-year-old healthy male developed blurred vision one week following phacoemulsification with multifocal intraocular lens implantation in the left eye, despite clear optical media. In spite of standard therapy administration (topical corticosteroid and non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug - NSAID), his symptoms persisted, with central retinal thickness measuring 327 μm on postoperative day 35, and visual acuity of 0.4. At this point, while continuing conservative ophthalmic therapy, we initiated adjunctive hyperbaric oxygen therapy, totaling 11 sessions of 2.5 ATA/90 minutes, 100% oxygen breathing, with air breaks every 20 minutes. The patient presented for follow-up examination after the fourth HBOT treatment, reporting significant reduction in subjective complaints of blurred vision. During this examination, visual acuity improved to 0.9. Despite the significant and rapid symptom regression, we continued HBOT treatment to maintain the results and facilitate neuroplasticity and cerebral accommodation. Final optical coherence tomography (OCT) examination was performed one month after completion of HBOT treatment: visual acuity 1.0, macular thickness 267 μm. During hyperbaric oxygen therapy, regression of blurred vision due to postoperative macular edema accelerated significantly, with results objectified by OCT examination that cannot be explained by spontaneous improvement. The application of HBOT in treating macular edema of this etiology may provide significant quality of life improvement in cases where the time factor of recovery is a significant consideration. Orv Hetil. 2026; 167(28): 1120-1126.