Robbins T, Gonevski M, Clark C, Baitule S, Sharma K, Magar A, Patel K, Sankar S, Kyrou I, Ali A, Randeva HS, et al.
Clinical medicine (London, England). Date of publication 2021 Nov 1;volume 21(6):e629-e632.
1. Clin Med (Lond). 2021 Nov;21(6):e629-e632. doi: 10.7861/clinmed.2021-0462.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the treatment of long COVID: early evaluation of a
highly promising intervention.
Robbins T(1), Gonevski M(2), Clark C(3), Baitule S(4), Sharma K(4), Magar A(4),
Patel K(5), Sankar S(6), Kyrou I(7), Ali A(6), Randeva HS(6).
Author information:
(1)University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK,
Warwick Medical School, Coventry, UK and Coventry University, Coventry, UK
timothy.robbins@nhs.net.
(2)Midlands Diving Chamber, Rugby, UK.
(3)University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK and
Coventry University, Coventry, UK.
(4)University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK.
(5)deputy chief executive officer and consultant cardiologist, University
Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK and Warwick Medical
School, Coventry, UK.
(6)University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK and
Warwick Medical School, Coventry, UK.
(7)University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK,
Warwick Medical School, Coventry, UK and Coventry University, Coventry, UK.
Comment in
Clin Med (Lond). 2023 Jan;23(1):99-100. doi: 10.7861/clinmed.Let.23.1.2.
BACKGROUND: Long COVID is a common occurrence following COVID-19 infection. The
most common symptom reported is fatigue. Limited interventional treatment
options exist. We report the first evaluation of hyperbaric oxygen therapy
(HBOT) for long COVID treatment.
METHODS: A total of 10 consecutive patients received 10 sessions of HBOT to 2.4
atmospheres over 12 days. Each treatment session lasted 105 minutes, consisting
of three 30-minute exposures to 100% oxygen, interspersed with 5-minute air
breaks. Validated fatigue and cognitive scoring assessments were performed at
day 1 and 10. Statistical analysis was with Wilcoxon signed-rank testing
reported alongside effect sizes.
RESULTS: HBOT yielded a statistically significant improvement in the Chalder
fatigue scale (p=0.0059; d=1.75 (very large)), global cognition (p=0.0137;
d=-1.07 (large)), executive function (p=0.0039; d=-1.06 (large)), attention
(p=0.0020; d=-1.2 (very large)), information processing (p=0.0059; d=-1.25 (very
large)) and verbal function (p=0.0098; d=-0.92 (large)).
CONCLUSION: Long COVID-related fatigue can be debilitating, and may affect young
people who were previously in economic employment. The results presented here
suggest potential benefits of HBOT, with statistically significant results
following 10 sessions.
© Royal College of Physicians 2021. All rights reserved.
DOI: 10.7861/clinmed.2021-0462
PMCID: PMC8806311
PMID: 34862223 [Indexed for MEDLINE]
