Exceptional blood loss anemia occurs when red blood cells are lost and oxygen delivery is compromised.
Many patients cannot be treated by transfusion to restore red blood cell mass for medical or religious reasons. Medical reasons may include the inability to cross match blood. Some may refuse transfusions for fear of a communicable disease.
Some signs and symptoms of exceptional blood-loss are: CNS: Mental confusion, slowed thought, Cardiac: Abnormal EKG, Intestional Ischemia: Abdominal pain, can't digest food properly. Physically weak, paleness.
Benefits From Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment
In 1956 Dr. Ite Boerma removed the red blood cells from pigs and found they could survive with oxygen dissolved in the plasma by use of hyperbaric oxygen. Hyperbaric oxygen can temporarily support life without hemoglobin. The increased oxygen carrying capacity of blood during Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is enough to support basal metabolic needs at rest.
The advantages of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) as an adjunct to cardiac surgery can be summarized as follows:
HBOT increases the safe time of induced cardiac arrest under normothermia.
HBOT reduces the impact of hypoxic complications and metabolic disturbances associated with cardiac surgery.
HBOT enables surgery to be performed without blood transfusion in some cases.
HBOT is the treatment of choice for air embolism as a complication of cardiac surgery.
Hart (1987) Summarized a series of 26 patients with severe anemia. Clinical management included replacement of lost volume, generous doses of hematenics (Vitamins B, C, and iron) and wrapping of extremities. 10 days of treatment required on average for improvement.
Write et al (2002) found faster recovery with HBOT in patients with 30% loss of hemoglobin. 11 days of improvement with HBOT as opposed to 14 days without.