Hyperbaric oxygen therapy heals radiation damage to the mouth, neck and head
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy heals radiation damage to the mouth, neck and head
Understanding osteoradionecrosis and radiation damage to the mouth
Radiation therapy for head and neck cancers can cause devastating delayed damage to the mouth, jaw, teeth and surrounding tissues. Osteoradionecrosis (ORN) occurs when radiation destroys blood vessels in the jaw bone, creating tissue that is hypoxic, hypovascular and unable to heal. This can lead to loosening teeth, bone death, painful mouth sores, gum infections and difficulty eating.
Radiation also causes fibrosis — tightening of connective tissue that makes it difficult to open the mouth (trismus). These complications can appear months to years after radiation treatment and progressively worsen without intervention. HBOT halts this deterioration by regrowing blood vessels, stimulating bone cell reproduction and mobilizing stem cells to damaged areas. The FDA and Medicare approve HBOT for osteoradionecrosis, and the evidence shows it heals the overwhelming majority of patients.
Loosening teeth and progressive jaw bone loss
Painful mouth sores, gum infections and difficulty eating
Jaw stiffness (trismus) from fibrous tissue tightening
Non-healing wounds in the mouth, tongue and throat
How pressurized oxygen rebuilds bone and tissue destroyed by radiation
HBOT reverses the hypoxic, hypovascular damage radiation causes in the mouth and jaw, restoring the body's ability to maintain healthy bone and tissue.
Saves loosened teeth by stabilizing jaw bone integrity
Regrows healthy bone and gum tissue
Heals mouth sores so eating becomes pain-free
Softens fibrous tissue to restore jaw movement
Grows new blood vessels in the irradiated area
Mobilizes stem cells for tissue regeneration
For Providers
Clinical evidence for HBOT in radiation damage to the mouth and jaw
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for osteoradionecrosis is one of the most well-established and FDA-approved applications in radiation injury treatment.
Mechanism of radiation damage: Radiation therapy destroys blood vessel linings through obliterative endarteritis, creating tissue that is hypovascular (few blood vessels), hypoxic (low oxygen) and hypocellular (few living cells). In the jaw, this leads to osteoradionecrosis — progressive bone death that cannot heal because the tissue lacks the blood supply and oxygen needed for repair.
Reversal of radiation injury: HBOT directly addresses all three hallmarks of delayed radiation injury. It stimulates angiogenesis to reverse hypovascularity, delivers 1,200% more oxygen to correct hypoxia, and mobilizes stem cells and stimulates fibroplasia to reverse hypocellularity. These mechanisms enable the jaw and mouth to regenerate healthy bone, tissue and blood vessels.
Pre-surgical preparation: HBOT is widely used before dental extractions and jaw surgery in irradiated patients. By preparing the tissue with increased vascularity and oxygenation before surgery, HBOT dramatically reduces the risk of post-surgical osteoradionecrosis and improves surgical outcomes.
Clinical effectiveness: The evidence shows that HBOT helps heal an overwhelming percentage of patients with osteoradionecrosis. It is effective for radiation damage to the jaw, teeth, gums, tongue, throat, salivary glands and surrounding soft tissue. The FDA and Medicare approve HBOT for this indication.
Safety with cancer history: Over 50 years of research confirms that HBOT does not stimulate cancer cell growth. It is safe for cancer survivors and specifically designed to treat the tissue damage caused by the radiation therapy used to fight cancer.
Hyperbaric treatment of delayed radiation injury
Dr Robert Marx documented the benefit of hyperbaric oxygen for treatment of osteoradionecrosis (ORN), which is the result of an aseptic, avascular necrosis of the bone. Marx showed that for hyperbaric oxygen to be consistently successful, it must be combined with surgery and antibiotics. Marx highlighted the need for pre-surgical hyperbaric oxygen to improve tolerance to surgery: Patients should receive 20 pre-surgery treatments, followed by ten post-surgical treatments.
Diffuse injury patterns that were a result of isodosing arose. The tumor was treated as a spheroidal mass in this study, recognizing that the larger number of target cells would be at the center. As such, researchers gave a boost dose to the center of the tumor. Because the mass decreases as you move away from the center, researchers delivered a lower dose. However, the patient developed an additional diffuse area of injury from beam divergence. Radiation wounds demonstrate a progressive, proliferative endarteritis. This is an obliterative process that destroys the tissue blood supply. The tissue ends up chronically hypoxic, fibrotic, and with a dearth of blood vessels. There is no satisfactory treatment of radiation necrosis using conventional therapy. It is difficult if not impossible to provide adequate nutrients and oxygen to the devascularized tissues. Surgical reconstruction of previously irradiated tissue has a very high failure rate due to poor healing. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy helps build new blood vessels in bone that typically has low blood flow in the first place. As such, it delivers oxygen, the key nutrient required for the bone to heal, and to help deliver the antibiotics required.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy and cancer—a review
Two systematic reviews on hyperbaric oxygen therapy and cancer have concluded that the use of HBOT in patients with malignancies is considered safe. To supplement the previous reviews, researchers summarized the work performed on HBOT and cancer in the period 2004–2012. Based on the present as well as previous reviews, there is no evidence indicating that HBOT either acts as a stimulator of tumor growth or as an enhancer of recurrence. On the other hand, there is evidence that implies that HBOT might have tumor-inhibitory effects in certain cancer subtypes.
Hypoxia is a critical hallmark of solid tumors and involves enhanced cell survival, angiogenesis, glycolytic metabolism, and metastasis. Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) treatment has for centuries been used to improve or cure disorders involving hypoxia and ischemia, by enhancing the amount of dissolved oxygen in the plasma and thereby increasing O2 delivery to the tissue. Studies on HBO and cancer have up to recently focused on whether enhanced oxygen acts as a cancer promoter or not. As oxygen is believed to be required for all the major processes of wound healing, one feared that the effects of HBO would be applicable to cancer tissue as well and promote cancer growth. Furthermore, one also feared that exposing patients who had been treated for cancer, to HBO, would lead to recurrence. Nevertheless, two systematic reviews on HBO and cancer have concluded that the use of HBO in patients with malignancies is considered safe. To supplement the previous reviews, we have summarized the work performed on HBO and cancer in the period 2004–2012. Based on the present as well as previous reviews, there is no evidence indicating that HBO neither acts as a stimulator of tumor growth nor as an enhancer of recurrence. On the other hand, there is evidence that implies that HBO might have tumor-inhibitory effects in certain cancer subtypes. Thus, researchers believe we need to expand our knowledge on the effect and the mechanisms behind tumor oxygenation.Patients share their oral radiation healing stories
Ginger, 48
Howard, 74
Fiona, a lively and proud mother of five grown children and an avid gardener, had received radiation many years earlier, which had damaged her bone.
It caused a severe infection in the bones in the roof of her mouth. In addition, Fiona was concerned about her low energy levels. She had tried everything, including antibiotics. When she received HBOT along with antibiotics, it cured the bone infection in her mouth. It healed and regrew her bones and gums. Fiona also said that her energy levels had also returned sufficiently that she could again garden, which she said was fundamental to her sense of well-beingOn some school holidays, she brings one of her children in to the shop. Angelina had a lumpectomy and radiation to her right breast. The difficulty started slowly over the next several years when she had pain on lifting up her right arm. Cancer was ruled out. She was sent to physical therapy. She did her physical therapy exercises daily as they requested but the weakness and pain continued to make working difficult as she repaired items on the machines. I gave her information about hyperbaric medicine and what it had done for my mother. She took it to her physician who approved her for HBOT. The mild swelling and some pain reduced within the first week of treatments. It took 30 treatments to repair the tissues to dispel the pain. A year later she was still working in the shop without pain or range of motion issues.
Fiona, 62
Marian had taught acupuncture for 12 years to students in a prestigious acupuncture school. She loved teaching and was devoted to her students.
One day, a reckless driver rammed Marian’s car so fast it resulted in multiple injuries, including a head injury. She recovered from her other injuries but her head “just wasn’t right.” She came to Bay Area Hyperbarics after 6 months of biofeedback, acupuncture and other therapies. She was depressed and was thinking of early retirement because she said she couldn’t teach students with her sluggish brain. She complained about piles of paper stacked around her house that she couldn’t sort through.
She was also plagued with intense emotional swings. She was so anxious that she would sit in our waiting room and cry while trying to “pull myself together to drive home.” She had become anxious of driving. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy repaired her brain and resolved her emotional volatility, anxiety, depression, and sluggish brain. She said she could think normally again. She returned to full time work teaching her students again.
Marian, 62
Your path from radiation mouth damage to restored oral health
We design a personalized HBOT protocol based on your radiation history, current symptoms and dental needs.
Comprehensive oral and radiation injury assessment
Our medical team reviews your radiation history, dental condition, imaging and symptoms to design an HBOT protocol coordinated with your oncologist and dentist.
Daily HBOT sessions in our pressurized chambers
You breathe 100% oxygen in a pressurized chamber for approximately 90 minutes per session. Osteoradionecrosis protocols typically involve 30 to 60 sessions.
Progressive bone regrowth and oral tissue healing
We track healing progress throughout treatment. Most patients experience progressive improvement in bone stability, tissue healing and pain relief.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the questions patients ask most about hyperbaric oxygen therapy for radiation damage to the mouth, jaw and head.
Radiation destroys blood vessels in the jaw and mouth, creating bone and tissue that cannot heal. HBOT grows new blood vessels, stimulates bone cell reproduction, mobilizes stem cells and softens fibrous tissue. This restores the blood supply and oxygen needed for the jaw and mouth to regenerate healthy bone, gums and tissue.
Start healing your radiation damage today
Schedule a free consultation to discuss how hyperbaric oxygen therapy can heal your mouth, jaw and teeth after radiation therapy.
