Center for Wound Management and Hyperbaric Medicine

Our Center for Wound Management and Hyperbaric Medicine offers extensive wound care options with state-of-the-art treatment for all chronic, non-healing wounds. Our program treats all wounds that have not shown signs of healing. These include:

• Acute burns
• Arterial and venous ulcers
• Pressure ulcers (bed sores)
• Chronic osteomyelitis (bone infection)
• Slow-healing wounds due to diabetes
• Necrotizing fasciitis (a bacterial infection also known as flesh-eating disease)
• Soft tissue radiation injuries (a side effect of radiation therapy for cancer)
• Post-operative wound complications
• Trauma-induced wounds

Patients in our program receive a personalized evaluation and treatment plan from certified wound care specialists and a multidisciplinary team that includes:

• Diabetes Educators
• Infectious Disease Physicians
• Registered Nurses Certified in Wound Care, Ostomy Care and Hyperbaric
• Nutritionists
• Podiatrists
• Pulmonologists/Critical Care Specialists
• Plastic Surgeons
• Vascular Surgeons

TREATMENT

On the initial visit, the patient will receive a comprehensive evaluation and a review of risk factors and medical conditions contributing to delayed healing of his or her wound. Diet, hygiene, level of activity and prior medical treatments that affect wound healing are also examined. With our team approach, each patient’s needs are assessed and a unique plan of care is implemented. Treatment modalities include wound debridement, offloading, growth factor application, wound coverage with skin substitutes, skin grafts and flaps, endovascular procedures and surgical bypass, as well as hyperbaric oxygen treatments.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides 100 percent pure oxygen in a pressurized chamber. This provides oxygen-rich blood to areas of the body that have insufficient oxygen and improves the body’s wound healing capabilities. It also helps to control infection and repair radiation damaged tissue. Our Center for Wound Management and Hyperbaric Medicine works in collaboration with each patient’s referring physician/provider while the wound is being treated. Regular updates regarding the patients progress are sent following each visit.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a treatment method for outpatients with qualifying diagnoses. During hyperbaric oxygen therapy, patients are immersed in 100 percent oxygen while inside of the treatment chamber, at a pressure two to three times higher than sea level. This delivery of oxygen under increased atmospheric pressure (ATA) has proven to be an effective method for treating a variety of medical conditions.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society recognize hyperbaric oxygen therapy as a significant supplemental treatment in the following disorders:

• Gas gangrene (occurs when infections develop deep inside the body)
• Acute traumatic peripheral ischemia (open fractures or crush injuries)
• Necrotizing fasciitis (a bacterial infection also known as flesh-eating disease)
• Chronic refractory osteomyelitis (a rare bone infection) that is unresponsive to conventional medical and surgical management
• Bone and soft tissue damage due to radiation therapy
• Wagner Grade III diabetic wounds

TREATMENT

Capital Health physicians, nurses and technologists are certified in hyperbaric medicine. Clinical staff includes physicians, registered nurses certified in wound management, ostomy care, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Hyperbaric medicine treatments may be used in conjunction with antibiotics and surgery. All aspects of hyperbaric medicine therapy are discussed with the patient in detail before he or she consents to treatment.

All treatments require a consult with our hyperbaric physicians for eligibility and authorization from insurance. The benefits of hyperbaric oxygen therapy are widely recognized by Medicare and other insurance carriers. A staff member provides individualized education to each patient before therapy begins and is present at the chamber at all times during therapy to assist with any concerns. Some patients experience side effects such as lightheadedness, ear popping, etc. These will be further discussed upon referral of a patient. Inside the treatment chamber, patients can get comfortable lying down to watch television or a DVD.

Benefits include:

• Improved wound healing by stimulating blood vessel growth
• Increased oxygen delivery to injured tissues
• Preservation of damaged tissues
• Improved infection control

Our staff uses a collaborative model of care, working closely with each patient’s primary/referring provider. Our doctors focus on the specific concerns for which the patient was referred for treatment, while the primary care provider continues to provide primary medical care for the patient. Our doctors also evaluate the patient’s response to treatment on a weekly basis. Progress reports are sent regularly to the referring physician.