Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) at Home

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is an effective and non-invasive procedure that has a long history of therapeutic applications. The user’s body is exposed to pressurized oxygen (95%) and under this oxygen concentration, the level of dissolved oxygen in blood plasma rises, resulting in plenty of oxygen supply to body cells. Previously, it was thought that working at a high oxygen level can be risky, so it was recommended to go for HBOT under the supervision of a professional or medical practitioner. With the advent of technology and innovation in design, we can find a variety of HBOT chambers, which are robust and safe to use at home.

Types of HBOT chambers

Following is a brief description of different types of hyperbaric oxygen chambers.

Other than the listed types of chambers, there are some specialized chambers designed for intense medical practices, sleeping, children, claustrophobic people, and many more.

Home-based HBOT chambers

The HBOT chambers for home use (mHBOT chambers) are specially designed to facilitate users to get therapy in the comfort of their homes and maintain the consistency that is difficult to achieve if they need to visit centers. The users can schedule their therapy anytime in the day and they don’t need to travel anywhere.

• Pressure: The pressure inside mHBOT chambers is between 1.3-1.5 ATA which is safe for everyone. This pressure is enough to generate the required partial pressure to dissolve oxygen in the blood.
• Oxygen concentration: The oxygen concentration in mHBOT chambers is around 24%. The oxygen concentration can be increased up to 95% depending upon the budget. If someone wants to get HBOT for physical fitness and healthy metabolism, then they may decide on the oxygen concentration, which is effective as well as affordable. Because users need to purchase oxygen cylinders.
• Low price: mHBOT chambers are affordable with the price ranging from $5,000 to $20,000, excluding the cost of oxygen cylinders.
• Portable: mHBOT chambers are usually made portable and small in size so that the users can easily place them in homes as well as travel with them to continue the therapy during vacations.
• WiFi connectivity: The modern HBOT chambers have access to WiFi. One can make use of this time to talk with family or connect to a trainer to get useful advice.
• Inflatable: HBOT chambers for home use are inflatable, making them easy to carry anywhere.

Benefits of getting HBOT at home

In the world we are living today, finding time to travel somewhere, getting stuck in travel, wasting time on roads, getting late for a to-do list, and many other concerns stop us from thinking of joining the fitness centers. Most people end up with either no physical activity at all or allocate their weekends to go to the gym or spa. The whole week they suffer from anxiety, fatigue, workload, and meeting deadlines that push them to prolonged depression or mood swings. Soft HBOT chambers at home give such users a chance to get the benefits of therapy at home consistently. The efficacy of therapy greatly depends on how punctually users take it.

Checklist

It is completely safe to take HBOT at home and the following aspects will clear the vision of what to do and what not to do during or before therapy.

• Medication: If you are on chemotherapy for drug abuse, skin infections, or other chronic illnesses, then consult your physician first.
• Smoking: the users must avoid smoking during therapy because it affects the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood and performs an anti-HBOT role.
• Drinks and food: Users can stay hydrated during HBOT as it is a lengthy procedure. But the use of carbonated or alcoholic drinks during therapy is forbidden. Diabetic people should check blood sugar before getting HBOT.
• Cold or fever: If you have a mild cold, flu, or fever, postpone your therapy till you feel completely healthy because it can cause damage to the middle ear.
• Clothes: Any comfortable and loose clothes in which you can feel relaxed.
• Prepare your ear: Before getting HBOT, clean your ear from excess wax. If you are suffering from an ear infection or had ear surgery recently, then it is not a good time to schedule HBOT.
• Keep a friend nearby: At least for some initial sessions, request a family member or friend to stay nearby.  
• Gadgets: As the operating pressure is low, so you can bring your phone, tablet or other electronic gadgets with you inside the chamber.

Precautions

Taking HBOT at home can be risky if you do not consider all the related aspects seriously. Though there is no serious complication reported for the therapy, still to make this experience enjoyable and useful, you must take care of some aspects.

• If you want to have more than one session a day, give at least 4 hours gap in between.
• If you plan to have a session longer than an hour, then take some normal air breaks.
• Keep the pressure of the chamber at lower levels.
• Check whether the pressurized chamber is continuously venting.
• Take care of oxygen as it is flammable. Any electric spark or carelessness can lead to serious consequences.
• Eat well before therapy because HBOT therapy boosts metabolism and you may feel nausea and headache due to low blood sugar levels.
• Take some training on how to operate the chamber. It will enable you to troubleshoot mini=or errors in time.
• Read the instructions carefully and if you don’t understand, you may take help from a professional before independently operating the chamber.

Choice of product

Purchase a high-quality certified chamber preferably Oxyhelp hyperbaric chamber. It is a European company manufacturing high-quality products with easy and automatic operation. The chamber can be pressurized and depressurized in 40 to 60 seconds. The design and antibacterial interior make it best for home use.

Conclusion

HBOT is an effective therapy that can boost our stamina, endurance, and health. The therapy is safe and can be experienced at home with specialized mHBOT chambers exclusively designed for home use that operate at low pressure and have an easy operating procedure.