[Treatment of acoustic trauma with hyperbaric oxygen]

This study is the result of a clinical experience we carried out in the Centre of Hyperbaric Oxygentherapy of the Belgian Navy in cooperation with the Military Hospital in Ostend. During a period of three years we treated 50 victims of acoustic traumata occurring in military service (due to shooting, explosions, ...) with a total of 76 disturbed audiograms. In the first part we explain the physiological principle of this lesion, analysing the traumatizing sound and the individual sensibility. The symptomatology and the audiometrical findings are discussed afterwards. The treatment consists in reassuring the O2 -- supply to the damaged receptive hearing-cells by vasodilatators, antiphlogistica and OHP. It is the oxygen, physically dissolved in the serum, that directly diffuses into the damaged cells -- without intervention or Haemoglobin in the erythrocytes. We found a statistically significant amelioration of this hearing-loss. The results as shown in the diagrams, are more convincing when we give a complete hearing-protection during the treatment and when wer can start the OHP as as soon as possible. Using PHP is an important improvement in the treatment of acute hearing loss due to acoustic traumata.