“The inspiration comes from hearing the stories of those who have been helped by oxygen therapy,” Joy Stephens said.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized chamber, a treatment that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for certain medical conditions such as decompression sickness, carbon monoxide poisoning and chronic non-healing wounds. Some practitioners also use HBOT for conditions such as traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder and long COVID, though these applications remain under investigation and are not currently FDA-approved.
“The inspiration comes from hearing the stories of those who have been helped by oxygen therapy,” Joy Stephens said. “The response has been positive. We have received feedback from several people that they are glad to have a hyperbaric chamber in the area. Many folks drive down to the Valley for treatment.”
The Stephens couple is the management team for the new business. The main technician is Scott Pettinger, who is a critical care transport flight paramedic. Kayla Pettinger, a registered diagnostic medical sonographer, is in training to be a hyperbaric oxygen therapy technician. David is also in training.
“My father-in-law and my wife are basic technicians operating under my license as an Intermediate Hyperbaric Technician,” Scott Pettinger said.
Chris Andrews, a nurse practitioner certified by the International Board of Undersea Medicine, serves as the clinic’s medical director. He evaluates patients via telemedicine consultations and determines appropriate pressure levels and the number of recommended sessions.
Andrews introduced the Pettingers to HBOT. “He invited us to come up to Utah to treat some of the medical conditions that we had,” said Scott. “We went up to receive six to eight treatments each. Both of our conditions improved. We saw first-hand through multiple treatments how safe and effective it was.”
Joy Stephens described the hyperbaric chamber. “It can have the same feeling as an MRI machine; however, it is large enough for one to sit up in and move around during treatment. There are two portholes that let in light and allow the administering technician to check in on you throughout the process.”
The oxygen is regulated through a flow meter, the rate of which is determined by the HBOT technician. Patients may wear a non-rebreather mask, which covers the nose and mouth, or a nasal cannula. It is recommended that they wear comfortable, cotton clothing inside the chamber. The sessions last between 60 and 90 minutes. Electronics are not allowed inside the chamber, but books are. A technician checks the patient’s temperature, blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen saturation.
“The patient can decide to lie down or sit upright,” Scott said about the chamber, which is about 7 feet long by 4 feet wide. “The machine has to pressurize up to a certain atmospheric pressure, determined by the condition we are trying to treat. Once the machine is at that atmosphere, it maintains that atmospheric pressure. You can move around, sleep or read.”
He said the average atmospheric pressure that they can treat is 1.3 to 3 atmospheres, explaining that standing on the beach is 1 atmosphere, 7 feet under water is 1.3 atmospheres, and 66 feet under water is 3 atmospheres.
“The pressure of gravity increases as we go under,” he said. “Conditions we are trying to treat determine pressure. It depends on how deep into the body we’re trying to heal.”
For example, he said, a chronic bone infection may require 2.5 to 3 atmospheres, adding that a more shallow, neurological issue might be a level of 1.3 to 1.75.
“It’s catching on a bit,” he said. “In America, there are not a lot of studies for the use of hyperbaric chambers for off-label conditions, but studies from around the world show that there are many health benefits associated with hyperbaric oxygen therapy.” QCBN
By Betsey Bruner, QCBN
Courtesy Photo: Joy Stephens, co-owner of Mile High Hyperbarics, sits inside a hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) machine at the Prescott Valley clinic. The chamber allows patients to sit upright or move around during treatment.
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