Hyperbaric Oxygen Remedy Turns Mathew’s Lengthy COVID / ME/CFS / POTS Round

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What an attention-grabbing story Matthew’s lengthy COVID/ ME/CFS restoration story is. It’s attention-grabbing as a result of it’s a mix of outdated and new: the outdated – Matthew benefitted enormously from a POTS analysis and remedy routine on the Bateman Horne Heart – after which lastly recovered utilizing a “new” remedy – hyperbaric oxygen remedy. He wrote about his expertise in “The Lengthy Haul: My 4-Yr Battle to Beat Lengthy COVID, ME/CFS, and POTS“.

Matthew was not a novice to uncommon or uncommon ailments. He was recognized with hyperparathyroidism – which impacts 0.3% of males – on the age of 19. Then on the age of 44, after virtually choking to dying, he was recognized with a extreme case of achalasia. It was lengthy COVID / continual fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) / POTS which almost killed him, although.

Matthew’s story of his battle to search out educated medical doctors and get assistance is  acquainted however comes with a twist. Whereas Matthew did get “full” workups from 3 hospitals – which turned out to be pointless – and did see 20 medical doctors – who received his analysis incorrect – he was in a position, via the web, to correctly diagnose himself and discover his solution to educated medical doctors inside 2 years.

Matthew first turned ailing in 2020, and I think about issues are higher now. After MEAction’s work on the Mayo Clinic, I’d hope that if Matthew hit the Mayo Clinic immediately, he can be rapidly recognized. Since Matthew turned ailing, two giant ME/CFS/FM/POTS/long-COVID facilities have opened up:  Metrodora, and David Putrino’s $10 million Cohen Heart for Restoration From Advanced Power Sicknesses. Plus, the RECOVER Initiative has produced 15 long-COVID clinics. Progress is being made.

Matthew’s Story

On the time Matthew received ailing, he gave the impression to be dwelling the dream. A profitable skilled on the high of his area, he had a superb household, many mates, and was financially safe. A well known criminologist, college professor, (and part-time brewologist), Matthew authored 25 books over time.

Fixing his achalasia required three surgical procedures however left him, as soon as recovered, with a burning need to begin dwelling, and that meant touring the world – and so he did, in the end visiting all 7 continents.

His lengthy COVID story began in Feb 2020 at a live performance in North Carolina – placing him among the many first individuals in North Carolina to come back down with COVID-19, and in the end lengthy COVID, ME/CFS, and POTS.

Mathew’s unusual 24-hour dizziness was one in every of his most discomforting signs.

The dizziness that will grow to be an indicator of his sickness and plague him for the following 4 years started about 2 weeks into his COVID-19 expertise. His different main signs had been mind fog, post-exertional malaise, and fatigue.

In the course of the day, he usually spent 6-12 hours in mattress. When PEM actually hit, he was unable to do easy issues like cooking, cleansing, or strolling the canine. Nothing had ready him for the extent of debility he was experiencing, and at one level he started to consider suicide.

His journey via the medical career didn’t assist. Whereas he acknowledged that lengthy COVID was new to medication, he however characterised his expertise with the medical career as “deeply perplexing, troubling, gut-wrenching, agonizing, irritating, and admittedly unacceptable”.

Moreover being advised that he must anticipate the science to catch up, he was given a number of defective diagnoses together with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, persistent postural-perceptual dizziness, vestibular hypofunction, Mal de Debarquement syndrome, and mind tumor – none of which match his specific signs.

For example, whereas Mal de Debarquement syndrome can produce signs that really feel like you might be on a ship, it doesn’t produce cognitive issues nor the 24-hour dizziness, doesn’t make one sweat extra, and isn’t worsened by cognitive or bodily exertion, and so on. It usually took Mathtew a couple of minutes on the web to grasp that none of his diagnoses match him.

As his medical doctors muffed analysis after analysis, and increasingly more exams had been unrevealing, he grew increasingly more determined to have one thing – something – present up. As an alternative of being delighted by an MRI which didn’t discover a mind tumor, the outcome almost introduced him to tears.

By the point he was lastly recognized with post-viral syndrome by a neurologist, he was already $6,000 out of pocket.

Not realizing what ME/CFS or POTS was, Mathew’s medical doctors saved offering incorrect diagnoses.

As so many individuals have, Matthew, based mostly on his on-line searches, first recognized himself with ME/CFS and/or POTS, after which headed to the Bateman Horne Heart in Salt Lake Metropolis, the place the NASA Lean check and the scientific examination confirmed the analysis.

Midodrine improved his signs by about 25% over a number of months. Including in Abilify, low-dose naltrexone, and Paxlovid helped considerably. Matthew felt his signs improved by about 5% a month, each month, for 2 years.

Dr. Bateman advised Matthew she thought he would finally absolutely recuperate, as in her expertise, long-COVID sufferers did higher than ME/CFS sufferers. Matthew received to the purpose the place he was in a position to go on much less strenuous hikes, do dwelling exercises (pushups, pullups, situps), and journey a bit. The journey was exhausting, nevertheless it was doable.

Matthew was trying into new remedy choices when in November 2023 – with out warning – he skilled a significant relapse that left him spending 20 hours a day at instances in mattress. Maybe probably the most disturbing factor concerning the relapse was that he couldn’t discover any motive for it – it simply occurred – and he was again within the soup.

After an excessive amount of forwards and backwards, questioning and hemming and hawing, Matthew determined to go for a “hail Mary” – a 3-month course of a brand new and principally unproven remedy – a course of hyperbaric oxygen remedy on the Aviv Clinic in Florida that will set him again tens of 1000’s of {dollars}.

It turned out to be an excellent choice.

Matthew’s Aviv HBOT Expertise

Aviv’s “Dive Tank”

At this level, Matthew would most likely be thought of to have a light to reasonable case of ME/CFS. He was nonetheless instructing and was nicely sufficient to journey, however was largely sedentary.

Three straight days of testing, together with MRI and SPECT mind scans, began his keep. (Dr. Hadanny stated that if the preliminary mind scan doesn’t present issues AVIV might not settle for the affected person as a result of they don’t assume the protocol will assist.) Throughout a cognitive check when requested to call as many phrases that begin with F as he might, this college professor might solely provide you with six.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Remedy

Respiration pure oxygen via a masks is not going to do it. Dr. Amir Hadanny in Jackle Baxter’s “The Lengthy COVID Podcast” first defined that it’s all due to Henry’s Legislation which states that extra oxygen might be delivered into the tissues at larger strain. Dr. Hadanny started analyzing HBOT in traumatic mind damage sufferers in 2008 and now leads Aviv Clinic’s hyperbaric oxygen remedy program.

Aviv states that the hyperbaric oxygen protocol will increase oxygen ranges within the physique 10-15-fold (!). The individuals alternate respiration pure oxygen with oxygen breaks, throughout which they soak up regular oxygen ranges – a course of Aviv states helps the tissue rejuvenate.

The method Aviv makes use of tips the mind into pondering its suffocating – it’s not.

The method appears very hormetic. Within the “hyperoxic-hypoxic paradox (HHP)”, when the individuals take away their masks after respiration a high-oxygen combination, the sudden drop in oxygen fools their brains into pondering they’re suffocating.

The mind is just not really experiencing a hypoxic or dangerously low oxygen state – it merely thinks it’s – and so goes into restore mode, producing some good new components: blood vessels, stem cells, and oxygen (power). This identical set of things – rising blood vessels, activating stem cells, and offering oxygen – is what HBOT does.

Hadanny said that wounds within the mind – elements of the mind which are metabolically impaired in lengthy COVID – are just like wounds within the physique. Whereas many hypotheses have been put forth to clarify these wounds the top outcome is identical – metabolically dysfunctional or low-energy areas of the mind.

HBOT has the potential to reinforce oxygen supply to the tissues, enhance mitochondrial functioning, assist restore tissues, filter out blood clots, and cut back irritation. On paper, it sounds nice!

The AVIV Protocol

Aviv states its HBOT protocols activate stem cells which then restore tissues.

Aviv incorporates each train and mind coaching into its protocol. Whereas each appear formidable to an ME/CFS/long-COVID affected person, the thought appears to be that because the physique will get extra oxygenated, the psychological and bodily train helps combine the oxygen increasingly more into the tissues and rebuild them.

On its web site, Aviv states it treats the next situations: reversing the biology of getting older, post-concussion syndrome, lengthy COVID, fibromyalgia, post-stroke restoration, Lyme Illness, post-traumatic stress dysfunction, athletic efficiency, and carbon monoxide poisoning. Its lengthy COVID web page consists of a number of restoration tales.

Dr. Hannardy reported that the 40 days of HBOT remedy Aviv makes use of for different situations turned out to not be sufficient for individuals with longer period (>6 months) lengthy COVID. Sixty days are wanted to develop the brand new blood vessels and neurons that produce long-term therapeutic.

Moreover doing 2 hours of HBOT a day (4 x 20-minute periods, respiration 100% oxygen) for 60 days, Matthew’s workforce at Aviv got here up with an train plan that included doing 10,000 steps a day, lifting gentle weights, elevated coronary heart work (123-138 beats/minute 4 x every week in zone 3 – reasonable train) which concerned sluggish jogging, and climbing a few times every week.

Matthew was prepared to attempt strolling, however when he realized the one solution to might get his coronary heart price up sufficient to get into Zone 3 coaching was by jogging, he balked. Whereas Dr. Bateman had warned him about changing into deconditioned and had him doing pushups, pullups, and situps, jogging – even sluggish jogging – was one thing else.

It was defined that the one solution to get the stem cells into his mind was to get his coronary heart price up sufficient – and for him, that meant sluggish jogging. Matthew signed on and between his HBOT periods, he did his sluggish jogging. At first, the jogging was as sluggish, messy, and painful as he’d anticipated, nevertheless it received simpler because the HBOT remedy continued.

He additionally spent 45 minutes a day performing a wide range of psychological workouts utilizing the BrainHQ pc program whereas within the hyperbaric chamber.

Outcomes

Three months later, Matthew reported he was symptom-free and jogging. Seven months later, he remained recovered.

It took Matthew two weeks earlier than he skilled a “zero symptom” second. That in the end progressed right into a zero-symptom day and a zero-symptom week. He stated he entered the 3-month program feeling like he was almost lifeless and left it feeling absolutely alive once more.

Three weeks after the remedy ended, he returned for a post-treatment evaluation. He was advised that his ldl cholesterol and triglycerides fell, his testosterone elevated, he gained 5 lbs of muscle, misplaced 11 lbs of fats, his VO2 max elevated by 18%, his anaerobic threshold elevated by 38%, blood flows to completely different elements of his mind elevated from 5-10%, and his cognitive efficiency in lots of areas elevated considerably. He thought of himself fully cured.

By the point his ebook was revealed in June, he had accomplished 4 5Ks. After I just lately communicated with him Matthew, he stated he’d maintained his restoration 7 months later.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Remedy (HBOT) Research

One overview factors out that HBOT seems to be concentrating on some fairly heavy-duty processes believed to be in play in lengthy COVID, ME/CFS, and fibromyalgia. They embody “ameliorating and reversing microvascular pathologies equivalent to endothelial dysfunction, microvascular rarefaction, improved blood-brain-barrier options, mitochondrial perform, mobile metabolism, irritation, and oxidative stress”.

Certainly, a number of research and case studies have made it clear that HBOT remedy can produce a minimum of momentary enhancements in lengthy COVID, fibromyalgia, and ME/CFS. A scientific overview of 10, principally small, lengthy-COVID HBOT case studies/research reported that HBOT has proven “some advantages for lengthy COVID signs” however that extra rigorous, large-scale trials are wanted. An Israeli research discovered enchancment in mind perfusion and microstructural modifications in a number of areas of the mind. The researchers reported that “HBOT can induce neuroplasticity and enhance cognitive, psychiatric, fatigue, sleep and ache signs of sufferers affected by post-COVID-19 situation”.

A meta-analysis of 4 FM randomized-controlled HBOT fibromyalgia trials concluded “extended remedy periods might assist with ache aid” and known as – not surprisingly – for bigger randomized, managed trials with bigger follow-up instances.

A 2015 Israeli HBOT FM research using a now acquainted protocol (40 day by day periods, 5 days/week, 90 minutes every, 100% oxygen with air breaks at 2.0 ATA) discovered that HBOT improved mind exercise the place it was most wanted: that’s, it improved frontal cortex exercise (seat of government functioning) and decreased exercise of the previously hyperactive mind areas that amplify ache.

Relying on who you might be you may get some, reasonable or actually good enchancment

A giant query has been whether or not the enhancements will final as soon as the remedy is stopped. Few individuals have the means, after all, to periodically return to get HBOT remedy. HBOT’s capability to realize long-term enchancment – equivalent to Matthew skilled – was borne out by a latest Israeli research revealed in Nature. (Dr. Hadanny referred to this research as an Aviv research nevertheless it was carried out on the Shamir Medical Heart in Israel and didn’t seem to incorporate the train and mind retraining points.)

The Israeli research adopted 31 long-COVID sufferers who underwent the same protocol – 40 day by day periods. (Hadanny now asserts that 60 periods are wanted for lengthy COVID).

A 12 months later, the affected person’s sleep, ache severity, and ache interference remained reasonably – or within the case of ache interference – largely improved. Neuropsychiatric signs (somatization, despair, and anxiousness) had been reasonably impacted as nicely.

This appeared to suit with Mathew’s subjective evaluation. He reported that he felt that everyone with lengthy COVID that he met a minimum of improved, some had dramatic enhancements, and a few, like him, recovered fully. Outdoors of lengthy COVID, he additionally noticed some miraculous recoveries – a stroke sufferer who was in a position to stroll once more, and an individual with debilitating nerve ache who ended up being pain-free.

Apparently, bodily functioning, as measured by the bodily functioning area of the SF-36 questionnaire, was not considerably improved. This a part of the SF-36 questionnaire asks how a lot one’s well being impacts one’s capability to do issues like strolling, climbing stairs, and so on.

These sorts of heterogeneous outcomes are, after all, the norm, not only for ME/CFS, FM, and lengthy COVID however for a lot of ailments. A take a look at Well being Rising’s Restoration Tales signifies that when given to the best particular person, all kinds of therapies – antivirals, vaccines, neuroplasticity applications, diets, Ampligen, nicotine patch, IVIG, spinal surgical procedures, Rapamycin and so on. – can lead to cures. The large query is how typically they accomplish that, and for whom.

With a minimum of 4 research underway, a few of them fairly giant (n=200; n=120, n=120, n=60 (Carmen Scheibenbogen), we’ll undoubtedly study extra concerning the effectiveness of HBOT remedy for lengthy COVID and ME/CFS over the following couple of years.

Conclusion

Few of us have the means to duplicate Matthew’s HBOT program, however Matthew’s story factors to one thing necessary and hopeful – and that’s the function that elevated oxygen ranges on the tissue degree might play. Till insurance coverage can pay for HBOT remedy – if it ever will – HBOT could also be extra necessary for what it’s pointing to than as a remedy chance for many of us.

The implications of accelerating oxygen ranges embody the likelihood that bettering blood flows (presumably by lowering sympathetic nervous system exercise), eradicating blood clots, rising oxygen ranges, enhancing mitochondrial exercise, and lowering irritation might be fairly useful.

A latest research, as an illustration, means that utilizing inspiratory muscle coaching – which may improve oxygen ranges – might be useful.

Given HBOT’s expense and the very long time part,. one wonders if the method could possibly be sped up. Might anticoagulants, mitochondrial dietary supplements, blood quantity enhancers, or immune modulators carried out together with HBOT assist with that? In the event you’re going to spend most likely tens of 1000’s of {dollars} on an Aviv keep, why not throw in $1,500 price of oxaloacetate? One would hope clinics like AVIV will finally present complete remedy protocols centered on every situation.

We’ll want greater and higher research, but when long-duration HBOT protocols might be counted on to supply everlasting and reasonable or higher aid, they need to be taken critically.

Well being Rising is just not affiliated in any means with the Aviv Clinics

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Matthew’s HBOT expertise was an ideal success which Well being Rising fleshed out with research data to get a extra full image

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Full and complete – that’s what we purpose for at Well being Rising. Matthew’s restoration story is a living proof. It was the place to begin of a journey into hyperbaric oxygen remedy, not the ending level. We needed to know the way HBOT confirmed up in research as nicely. That’s how we attempt to get as full an image as potential.

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