The following is a discussion between newsgroup members on Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment.

To date the Tinnitus has continued to improve. I sometimes experience 3 to 4 days with virtually no Tinnitus. Prior to the treatment the maximum period was 12 hours T free. Additionally the level of my T had diminished from "Screaming Jet Turbines" to annoying / irritating background noise. This has made an incredible improvement in the quality of my life.

An audiogram conducted last week shows a definite mild improvement in my hearing in the upper frequencies which was where the hearing loss was most significant.

This report is reproduced as a matter of record only and should not be taken to mean that this therapy would work or in fact conclusively works for T suffers. Also note overseas studies stress the importance of this therapy being undertaken within 3 months of the onset of T. I was at the 3 month limit when I proceeded with this therapy. This therapy is widely considered experimental.

Gary.

Nearly one year later.
I last underwent HBO treatment 1 year ago. I often look back at the treatment and try to recollect how my T was prior to the HBO. In my case I have no doubts that the T had significantly improved. Prior to the treatment I often had sessions of screaming T which I have not had since the treatment. My usual T cycle is 3 days with and 3 days without. I have had sessions of 2 weeks with no T. When I say no T I mean I don't hear it unless I go into a quiet room and try and listen for it. I have also had days with absolutely NO T whatsoever. These days would be perhaps 1 day per month. Even when I have T now it doesn't dominate all my thoughts, it is just a minor irritation. Perhaps I have habituated somewhat, who knows?

There has been no improvement nor worsening of my T since the cessation of my HBO treatment. I underwent 27 dives and found the maximum benefit peaked on about the 20th dive.

My thoughts are that if I had not tried the HBO, I would have always wondered if it may have helped. As you know there is only a six month window in which this treatment should be undertaken. The possible regrets in not trying the HBO may have been worse than the T itself.

It may just be a coincidence that my T was naturally improving anyhow over the period of my HBO treatment but that would have been a major coincidence. I have found now that stress is a major trigger for my T. So I try and relax a bit more and not get too tied up in my business.

Its hard to say if I would recommend it to others. I know overseas it is very expensive treatment. If a person could afford the treatment I would recommend they try it but would add don't go in expecting a cure.
Gary.

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: HBO-Therapy
From: Thomas
Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 Hi everyone,
I`m from Germany and have T since four weeks. I have started an oxygene therapy in a high pressure cabin that is to be taken 10 to 15 times. Does anybody have experience with this therapy? T seems to disappear after leaving the cabin and does not come back for hours.

Thanks, Thomas

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: Re: HBO-Therapy
From: (CC Conny)
Date: 29 May 1997

I had HBO-Therapy. The insurance granted 20 sessions. It was very important not to work during the 5 weeks of treatment. And as you know, in Germany that should not be a problem. The success rate is much higher with people not going to work and relaxing before and after hbo than people rushing from and to work again. Besides that, hbo is quite a physical tough treatment.

Most good docs suggest Vitamine E during hbo as a free radical killer because of all the oxygene. Unfortunately most statistics in germany say, that T will come back after a couple of month. But I enjoyed those months where I could barely notice my T.

Conny

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: HBO and other good things
From: Thomas
Date: Mon, 16 Jun 1997

Hello everybody,

I admire the people who send their opinions to this newsgroup and provide it with very interesting stuff. I would like to thank a few of you for their informations - you know who you are.

It seems that my T finally fades away while using the HBO-therapy. For me this treatment is the most effective one I could ever think of, because it had an immediate effect. Okay, I have my T only for 2 months now, but without this newsgroup perhaps I would have gone to an ENT-specialist later. I have changed my lifestyle completely, I eat much more fruits now, I use more time to relax and live has become more intensive while living with that little TV in my ear. Suddenly I know a lot of people - colleagues, friends and whoever - who suffer from T. I did not know before that so many people have to live with that. I will try to help other people wherever I can, because now I know how bad live can treat you...

Oh, by the way, if anybody is interested in facts and figures about HBO:

The following figures show the pressure of oxygen in the blood in different conditions (the normal pressure of our atmosphere is 1.0 bar):

pressure of environment: pressure of oxygen in blood::

1. normal atmosphere (1.0 bar) 90 mmHg
2. normal atmosphere with pure oxygen 120 mmHg
3. normal atmosphere with p.o. in a sauna 200 mmHg:

4. 1.5 bar pressure (= 5 metres depth) 500 mmHg
5. 2.0 bar pressure (=10 metres depth) 750 mmHg
6. 2.5 bar pressure (=15 metres depth) 1,400 mmHg !
7. 3.0 bar pressure (=20 metres depth) 1,900 mmHg !:

As you can see there is an enormous increase of oxygen in the blood when the pressure of the atmosphere rises. That is the result of :

1. Dalton's law p1 + p2 + pn = P
2. Boyle-Mariotte's law p * v = const.
3. Henry's law Cx = Kx * Px:

Those of you who are familiar with chemical and physical stuff will know what this is all about. It is difficult for me to translate all the specific German words in this case, but if you have any question, please feel free to ask me!:

Good luck for all of you!

Thomas:

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: Re: HBO and other good things
From: (Elly Byrne)
Date: Wed, 18 Jun 1997
Thank you Thomas, that is excellent information.

Can someone out there now please tell me why it is important to raise the oxygen level in the blood? What does it achieve? Why does it help Tinnitus? Does it only work in the early stages, or veteran T people too?

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: Re: HBO and other good things
From: (Conny)
Date: 19 Jun 1997
I was informed it is basically to feed the "tired" cells to give them a push to either heal themselves completely or at least to help them heal. With advanced oxygene, the metabolism (I hope it is the right word) is pushed and the system is working more effectively

Some people are saying that the small blood vessel in the ear region I cannot push too much blood through their little "vessels". So with more oxygene, the vessels can reach more power, the blood flows better through the body. There is some rumour that little blood flow can cause sounds.

However, in my country, only HBO is paid by the health insurances if it is done within 6 weeks of development of T. Then the chances are over 70 % that it will go away for at least 6 months or so.

In my case it has returned. An older T is a try and error thing.

Newsgroups: alt.support.tinnitus
Subject: Re: HBO and other good things
From: Thomas
Date: Thu, 19 Jun 1997
Hello Elly,

Tinnitus is usually caused by a lack of blood flowing through the inner ear. The cells in the inner ear must be supplied with oxygen as an important component of our blood. If they are not supplied with enough oxygen they will fail in their function. The sound that the Tinnitus produces is caused by malfunctional cells in the inner ear. These sounds can occur in many different forms like beeping or whatever we know. If these cells are provided with oxygen in a high dosis for a specific time the chances that they will be 'repaired' raise significantly.

The HBO therapy only makes sense if the T is quite young, it will not help you, if the T has become chronic, because then the cells are 'dead' and cannot be built up again.

If you get medicine against Tinnitus it usually is something to let the blood get thinner. I have combined these methods to cure my T and it worked! Yesterday I have had my last therapy unit of HBO and I tell you my T has gone almost completely! I do not know how it would have been if I had not taken the chance to use HBO, but I have recognized a change in the sound almost every day since my third therapy unit.

I have spoken to the chief doctor, because I wanted to know how the results of this therapy are in general. He told me that there were about 2000 patients since 1994. 70 percent of them had a positive result! There is a lot of statistics about this not only in Frankfurt. I will try to get more informations for you.

Have a nice day,
Thomas

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