What is this?

nilepoc · Oct 1, 2001

Nursing in a hyperbaric chamber. Usefull for divers who get the bends (nitrogen narcosis), CO poisoning patients, and some say for wound healing. It is a rather special field, we have only one hyperbaric chamber in our whole city, maybe our state.

I don't know much else about it though.

BrandyBSN · Oct 1, 2001

Thanks :)

JW-HLC · Jan 13, 2002

Don't know if you are still looking for information but the following link has some useful information - it is often helpful in bloodless treatments as in for the treatment of Jehovah's Witnesses. The site gives details of many cases that it is used for:-

Hyperabric Oxygen Treatment

H2OHead · Feb 11, 2002

I have seen hybrebaric treatments in the hospital for wound healing. Increased partial pressures of oxygen are supposed to have a positive effect on difficult wounds. I have also seen where a whole team enters a large chamber and lavaged a womans lungs. Brutal invasive proceedure for bad empyema, but done in hyper oxygen setting and the pt did very well. I am interested in diving medicine. I will be an RN soon (gradutae may 2nd, and I love to scuba dive. I can't think of a better way to make a living. If anyone has any info on hyperbaric nursing/diving medicine/decompreesion theory, please let me know.

Mac

Stargazer · Feb 22, 2002

Mac, I used to work as an Inside Attendant in this unit for several years. A ton of published research has come from this unit, as well, which you can find with links from this site or with a Google search.

I'd also be happy to answer any questions you have about working in a hyperbaric unit.

RN2B2005 · Nov 15, 2002

Mac,

Check out Virginia Mason Medical Centre in Seattle, WA (http://www.vmmc.org). They have the only non-military fixed hyperbaric chamber in the region (maybe the only one in the region, period) and an entire department devoted to hyperbaric medicine and research. It is used for decompression treatment for the "bends"; hyperoxygenation of wound sites; CO poisoning treatment; and assorted other things. As a nursing specialty, it is both physically and mentally demanding and definitely very unique.

RN2B2005 · Nov 15, 2002

Ah, apologies to Stargazer. You already gave Mac the link to Virginia Mason. I was so excited about having something intelligent to say (doesn't happen often) that I didn't check to see that you had already said it. Cripes. Sorry.

vaughanmk · Jan 20, 2003

There is a hospital in Kansas City with several chambers used for wound care and another hospital that has one for general use. A friend of mine runs the wound clinic that has the chambers. They are amazing devices and help the patients that use them.

MommyJoy · Mar 18, 2005

There is a hospital in Kansas City with several chambers used for wound care and another hospital that has one for general use. A friend of mine runs the wound clinic that has the chambers. They are amazing devices and help the patients that use them.

I just read this post about the hospital in Kansas City. My aunt has been to a hospital in KC three times for wound care. Her first situation involved a case of staph infection in her arm. It was so bad, that the doctors in Topeka, KS. had amputation scheduled. My mom and I heard about the KC hospital, transferred her there, and her arm was better in about 2 months. She recently went back for another wound, and again the hyperbaric chamber helped her. The third time, the only thing that would help her was the hyperbaric again.

I am in nursing school in Oklahoma, and because of my aunt's experiences I am very interested in hyperbaric nursing and wound care.

I just thought you might be interested in my story.

goodknight · Mar 20, 2005

Nursing in a hyperbaric chamber. Usefull for divers who get the bends (nitrogen narcosis)

Just thought I'd correct something here. Nitrogen Narocosis or Narc'd as it is more commenly called among divers is a drunk like sensation while diving and goes away as soon as the diver surfaces. The bends (what you treat w/ a chamber) is decompression sickness or DCS. This is when the body does not off gas efficiently and bubbles develop in the blood stream. When this happens the diver must be returned to depth in a chamber so that the bubbles can reabsorb and then be slowly off-gassed while ascending.

Just thought I'd clear that up, no disrespect to nilepoc.

Daytonite, BSN, RN · May 24, 2005

I recently completed 75 dives. I had radiation therapy in 1996 postoperatively for a parotid tumor. Somehow, my dentist missed some decay under the crown of a molar that was in the radiation field. It had to be extracted. I was sick about the whole thing. I had 20 pre-extraction HBO treatments. Being an RN and knowing enough to be dangerous I was very worried about osteoradionecrosis. I think we dodged the bullet this time, but I had to have a debridement a month after the tooth was extracted to remove some necrotic bone. The socket remained open and the wound just didn't look like it was going to come together and heal. And, then during the last two weeks of HBO it was like my fairy godmother touched me with her magic wand because it healed and closed up that fast.

The respiratory therapists were terrific. The actual treatments for me were kind of boring because it's not all that much fun being confined for an hour and a half in a chamber, but I endured. I constantly questioned the nurse about how they handled situations like a patient having a seizure or a cardiac arrest while they were in the pressurized chamber. They were just so calm and cool about answering my questions.