Adequate tissue oxygenation is an essential factor in
diabetic foot management. Hyperbaric
oxygen (HBO)
therapy has been successfully used as adjunctive treatment to improve the healing of
diabetic foot ulcers. However, the clinical uses of HBO
therapy are limited due to the low availability of HBO chambers, poor patient compliance, and high oxidative potential. Normobaric hyperoxic (NBO)
therapy may be a potentially attractive alternative to HBO
therapy because of its high availability, good patient compliance, and few technical requirements. Several studies on NBO
therapy to attenuate
infarct volume after
stroke have provided compelling evidence. However, there have been no reports regarding the effect of NBO
therapy in the field of wound healing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of NBO
therapy on tissue oxygenation of
diabetic feet. This study included 100 patients with
diabetic foot ulcers (64 males and 36 females). Transcutaneous partial
oxygen tension (TcPO₂) values of
diabetic feet were measured before, during, and after NBO
therapy. The mean TcPO₂ values before, during, and after
therapy were 46.6 ± 21.5, 88.9 ± 48.0, and 49.9 ± 23.8 mmHg (p < 0.001), respectively. The lower the initial TcPO₂ level, the more TcPO₂ increased. The results reveal that NBO
therapy significantly increases the tissue oxygenation level of
diabetic feet.