New publication accepted: Pencalet, 2025

Congratulations to Dr. Pencalet on the publication of his narrative review on the use of hyperbaric oxygen as a treatment for patients with fibromyalgia in the journal Current Rheumatology Reviews. We are delighted to have contributed to the success of this article!

𝐇𝐲𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐨𝐱𝐲𝐠𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐲 delivers large quantities of oxygen to the body via a hyperbaric chamber. Its concentration in the lungs and then the blood is 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝟏𝟓, as the oxygen is administered pure and generally at 2.5 times the atmospheric pressure. There is a 𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: from emergencies such as gas embolism, diving accidents, or carbon monoxide poisoning, to 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 such as sudden deafness, wound healing disorders, or gas gangrene.

Fibromyalgia is a 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 characterized by 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐧 lasting more than 3 months, accompanied by fatigue, sleep disorders, joint stiffness, and other symptoms, notably cognitive. Studies suggest that 𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐱𝐲𝐠𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 may be at the root of the muscle degeneration observed in fibromyalgia patients. Could hyperbaric oxygen therapy 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬?

After reviewing the literature, the majority of studies were 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥. Few randomized trials or reviews were found. Encouraging results suggest that hyperbaric oxygen therapy 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 in these patients as adjuvant therapy, but controlled trials with 𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 are needed to confirm these findings. The article is available on the journal's website: 𝟏𝟎.𝟐𝟏𝟕𝟒/𝟎𝟏𝟏𝟓𝟕𝟑𝟑𝟗𝟕𝟏𝟑𝟕𝟎𝟕𝟕𝟑𝟐𝟓𝟎𝟔𝟐𝟓𝟏𝟎𝟒𝟔𝟒𝟔.