Surgical Recovery Support in Edmonton

We have options for improving healing

We can support patients both before and after various surgical procedures.

Our Naturopathic Doctors work mostly with Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT)

We also work with various nutritional IV Therapies for improving healing.

Hyperbaric Oxygen has significant evidence with regards to pre and postoperative care.

Couple getting Hyperbaric Oxygen for surgery.

Enhance Surgical Healing

Background

Any surgical procedure carries the risk of complications, including wound-healing problems. The use of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is an accepted method of supporting wound healing.

HBOT is a safe and effective treatment option that promotes the systematic repair of ischemic tissues by enabling the direct diffusion of oxygen through the inhalation of 100% oxygen in a pressurized chamber.

It's reasonable to assume patients undergoing surgery desire a fast recovery so they can return to their daily activities. The duration required for wound healing has been shown to be dramatically lower with the use of HBOT in a number of case reports and studies.

Aesthetic surgery has gained increasing popularity over the past few decades - as such our office has helped numerous patients with aesthetic postoperative care.

Risk factors for poor surgical outcomes:

• Age
• Body mass index
• Smoking

• Hypertension

• Poor nutritional status
• Diabetes
• Previous surgery of the same area
• Scar tissue

Hyperbaric Mechanisms - Surgery Support

Increased tissue oxygenation

Breathing oxygen under Hyperbaric conditions can increase arterial oxygen tensions twenty fold and tissue oxygen tensions ten fold and therefore dramatically improve tissue oxygenation.

Increased Collagen Production - The fibroblast is one cell responsible for soft tissue healing (forms collagen) - Hyperbaric treatment dramatically increases fibroblast proliferation.

Control of infection

HBO can enhance the efficiency of white blood cells to kill pathogens in addition to control of anaerobic organisms as well as improving the efficacy of some antibiotics.

Neovascularization

Regional stimuli like VEGF influence new blood vessel growth in a process termed angiogenesis - HBO also stimulates the recruitment of circulating progenitor cells to form new vessels.

Treatment

Our Naturopathic Doctors have seen improvements in patients primarily using IV Therapy & Hyperbaric Oxygen.

In particular, Hyperbaric Oxygen has strong data for its use in surgical recovery.

IV Therapy is often punctuated 1-2x weekly in between Hyperbaric sessions.

A high potency multi-vitamin, Vitamin A, Glutamine and proteolytic enzymes are often given orally.

IV Therapy

We use IV Therapy for aggressive nutritional support before and after surgery.

IV Therapy can provide clinically relevant doses of healing nutrients.

Vitamin C, Zinc, Selenium as well as B1, B5, B6, B12 and Magnesium are key IV nutrients.

We also frequently use our immune Myers Cocktail Vitamin IV with additional Vitamin C.

IV therapy is especially helpful because of reduced appetite and oral intake after surgery.

Select Hyperbaric Studies

Nasr (2023):

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Threatened Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy Flaps: An Adjunct for Flap Salvage

Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy is a form of breast conservation surgery.

Compromised blood flow or tissue death remain frequent complications of this approach.

A retrospective review looked patients treated with HBOT at one center in patients with signs of reduced tissue blood flow.

22 of 25 breasts did not require operative revision (88.0%)

Simman (2022):

Role of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery in Ischemic Soft Tissue Wounds: A Case Series

A plastic surgeon published 4 cases in which adjunctive Hyperbaric treatment was used to treat wounds with compromised blood flow.

Case 1:

53-year-old woman received a Juvéderm dermal filler for nasal tip refinement and presented 10 days later with nasal tip skin tissue death.

HBOT was initiated at 2.5 ATA and she completed 25 dives.

Following HBOT, patient had great improvement of the wound (within 3 weeks).

Case 2:

A 30-year-old woman who received Juvéderm dermal filler into the left side of her chin presented after 24 hrs with reduced blood flow and mild smile asymmetry.

HBOT was initiated at 2.5 ATA and she completed 5 dives.

Following HBOT, patient had complete resolution (within 3 weeks)

Case 3:

A 46-year-old woman underwent multiple surgeries abroad, including abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) and liposuction presented 17 days after surgery with a nonhealing postsurgical wound.

HBOT was initiated at 2.5 ATA and she completed 39 dives in addition to surgical debridement.

Following HBOT, patient had complete resolution (within 3 months).

Case 4:

A 73-year-old woman underwent Mohs surgery for skin cancer and developed nasal tip necrosis.

HBOT was initiated at 2.5 ATA and she completed 20 dives.

Following HBOT, patient had complete resolution (within 5 weeks).

Neel (2023):

Assessing the Efficacy of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy on Facelift Outcomes: A Case–Control Study Comparing Outcomes in Patients With and Without Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

The authors recruited 20 female patients who underwent facelift for this study, with 9 patients in the HBOT group and 11 patients in the control group.

HBOT was initiated at 2.0 ATA for 60-90 minutes with 7.22 average sessions used.

The time until wound healing in the HBOT group ranged from 7 to 30 days (mean of 13.3 days). compared to the control group, which ranged from 6 to 90 days (mean of 36.9 days).

The authors concluded "this indicates a statistically significant shorter time to wound healing in the HBOT group compared to the control group."

Spruijt (2021):

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment for mastectomy flap ischaemia: A case series of 50 breasts

A retrospective analysis was performed of 50 breasts requiring HBOT for mastectomy tissue with compromised blood flow.

HBOT was started a median of 3 days (range 1–23) after surgery.

HBOT was initiated at 2.5 ATA for 85 minutes with a median of 12 sessions (range 6–22) used.

Twenty-nine breasts (58%) recovered without additional operation.

Friedman (2019):

Hyperbaric Oxygen Preconditioning Can Reduce Postabdominoplasty Complications: A Retrospective Cohort Study

A retrospective analysis looked at 83 patients that underwent HBOT preoperatively before abdominoplasty (tummy tuck).