Hyperbaric and Autism
Traditionally, hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been used for years for countering several clinical disorders that include chronic diabetic wounds, decompression sickness, countering arterial gas embolism, and many other disorders.
However, recently many doctors and researchers have been using hyperbaric therapy to treat autism with positive effects. Several individuals affected with ASD display certain physiological traits and characteristics that HBOT might be able to address and ameliorate. These physiological abnormalities include oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, cerebral hypoperfusion, and inflammation. Studies have shown that hyperbaric and autism was a good match as this treatment method brought in positive changes in the behavior and/or physiology of autistic children.
What is Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and How does it Work?
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) involves breathing in pure oxygen at heightened atmospheric pressure in an airtight compartment known as the hyperbaric chamber. Compared to other clinical disorders, HBOT is used at much lower pressures like 1.3 to 1.5 atm for the treatment of developmental and neurological disorders.
The patient is exposed to a 100% pure oxygen environment so that he or she could breathe in more amount of oxygen than what is possible normally. The oxygen carried by the blood in our blood releases growth factors that promote healing in our bodies. The increased pressure inside the hyperbaric compartment allows the oxygen to dissolve in all bodily fluids including blood to reach the injured or inflamed area where blood is either impaired or restricted.
Hyperbaric and Autism: How does HBOT Affect the Physiological Abnormalities in ASD?
Effect of Hyperbaric Therapy on Cerebral Hypoperfusion:
Several studies have indicated the presence of cerebral hypoperfusion in autistic individuals after comparing SPECT and PET scans with the patients with the scans of the control group. Researchers have associated cerebral hypoperfusion with certain autistic behaviors like inability to process facial expression, repetitive behavior, inability to express or understand emotions, low language development, and a knack for sameness. Apart from this cerebral hypoperfusion is also being held responsible for the causing ASD in children of older ages who display severe autistic behaviors.
Hyperbaric and autism go hand in hand and have been proven to bring positive changes in autistic individuals. Several studies have reported improvement in cerebral hypoperfusion after the patient underwent HBOT sessions at lower air pressures of 1.3to 1.5 atm. Researchers took SPECT scans of the patient before and after undergoing hyperbaric therapy and found that there were noticeable behavioral improvements in the autistic individual. The same results were also seen in TBI and chronic brain injury patients after they underwent low-pressure HBOT sessions.
Effects of Hyperbaric Therapy on Inflammation Found in Autistic Individuals:
Recent research has found that some autistic individuals with apparent signs of gastrointestinal inflammation, neuroinflammation, and/or immune dysregulation. A 2012 review went through 416 scientific publications that mentioned the presence of immune abnormalities and inflammation in individuals diagnosed with ASD. Out of the 416, 31 publications implicated the presence of gastrointestinal inflammation while 61 found neuroinflammation in the patients.
HBOT has shown potent anti-inflammatory properties when tested on both animals and humans. To support these findings, a recent 2012 systematic review reported that studies have found improvement in the above-mentioned medical disorders after the patient underwent HBOT in IBD. However, the reduction in the inflammation present in the autistic individuals may have reduced due to the pressure inside the hyperbaric chamber and not necessarily by the pure oxygen breathed in.
Effects of Hyperbaric Therapy on Mitochondrial Dysfunction:
One of the other symptoms of ASD commonly found in patients is varying ranges of mitochondrial dysfunction. While the treatment options for this medical disorder are still quite limited, there has been a significant increase in interest in using HBOT as a potential treatment to counter this health condition.
Several studies have examined the effect of hyperbaric therapy on mitochondrial dysfunction on both animal and human models and have reported that there has been significant improvement in both cases.
Hyperbaric and Autism: Effects of HBOT on Oxidative Stress
Hyperbaric experts Rossignol and Frye published a review article in 2012 concerning the presence of oxidative stress in children with ASD. The researchers stated that 115 scientific publications mentioned the presence of oxidative stress in patients diagnosed with ASD. While some children with ASD suffer from high oxidative stress, many researchers have expressed their concerns that subjecting these patients to hyperbaric therapy might increase the oxidative stress in them.
Theoretically, there are chances that HBOT might increase the levels of oxidative stress by amping up the production of ROS due to the high concentration of oxygen. Increased delivery of pure oxygen to the mitochondria can lead to greater production of ROS.
However, in a balancing act, it has been found that hyperbaric therapy has increased the production of antioxidant enzymes like catalase, superoxide dismutase, paraoxonase, glutathione peroxidase, and heme oxygenase 1. The increased level of antioxidant enzymes counters the production of ROS and protects the body from the damage caused by the latter.
Hyperbaric and Autism: A Viable Alternative Treatment for Children with ASD
HBOT, when used at 1.5 atm pressures, has proven effective in countering oxidative stress, cerebral hypoperfusion, and inflammation. Along with the decreased markers of these health conditions, behavioral improvement has also been noticed in the patients. Hyperbaric and autism has proven to be a great combination and is gaining increasing support from the global ASD community.
