The chronic nature of multiple sclerosis, unpredictable exacerbations and remissions, and devastating effects make the condition a target for quack (and often expensive) treatments. These sham therapies ignore the unpredictable nature of the disease and claim any improvement as evidence that the treatment is effective, or even a "cure."

The Scientific Method

Over time, the medical community has come to rely on the scientific method as the "gold standard" for proving the effectiveness and safety of a given medical therapy. 


These Scientific Studies Are:

1) randomized (treated and untreated groups have similar characteristics but are selected randomly),
2) double-blind (neither the treating doctor nor the patient is aware of whether the patient is receiving treatment or placebo),
3) and placebo-controlled (at least some of the patients are untreated, but not aware that they are only receiving placebo.

As a result, this type of research often costs millions of dollars.

Since hyperbaric oxygen therapy is not a patentable drug with the potential of returning billions of dollars in profits to a pharmaceutical company, there is no incentive for any company to do the studies required for FDA approval of its use for the treatment of MS. HBOT remains a legal, off-label therapy relying merely on its history of effectiveness—it is seldom, if ever, covered by U.S. insurance.

Early Hyperbaric Studies

In the 1970s, reports from four European countries described the benefits of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the treatment of MS. In 1975, world-leading authority on Hyperbaric Oxygen therapy Dr. Richard Neubauer treated a patient with HBOT for osteomyelitis (bone inflammation) at the Ocean Medical Center near Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The unexpected improvement in the patient's multiple sclerosis led to a number of double-blind scientific studies.

Neubauer's Studies

Dr. Neubauer subsequently reported that 70 to 80 percent of his MS patients stabilized or improved with individually-adjusted, low-pressure (<1.3 to 1.5 atmospheres) hyperbaric oxygen therapy. The 20 to 30 percent who continue to deteriorate is far less than the 80 percent whose untreated or ineffectively treated disease progresses. His protocol, demonstrated to be effective in both double-blind and longitudinal clinical studies (treated patients observed over a period of time), reduced tissue damage and symptoms.

Results from the first randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of HBOT for MS patients, conducted at New York University and published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1983, showed 12 of 17 patients improved with only 2 showing deterioration at one year follow-up. Minimum disease duration for this chronic progressive/stable group was over 11 years. HBOT benefits were greater for those less severely affected by the disease. (In contrast, 80 percent of untreated or ineffectively treated patients worsen over time.)

In 1984, Dr. Neubauer reported that, of the more than 10,000 MS patients in fourteen countries who had been treated with HBOT, 70 percent improved in brain and bowel-bladder function and experienced decreased muscle spasticity. Measurable observed improvement occurred in about 25 percent of the patients. Subjective improvement (how the patient felt) occurred in about 45 percent of the patients. At a hyperbaric medicine conference, Dr. Neubauer reported that 600 MS patients treated with HBOT experienced significant objective improvements—periodic HBOT "boosters" reduced deterioration and relapse frequency.

In 1986, Neubauer and Kagan showed that one or more lesions associated with MS disappeared in 11 of 35 patients (31.4%) after one hour of hyperbaric oxygen treatment. In papers presented at three international meetings, Neubauer, Kagan, and Gottlieb reported that magnetic resonance (MRI) studies showed a statistically significant reduction in the number and size of lesions for treated patients as compared with untreated patients.

International Studies

Positive results are international. In a double blind, placebo-controlled 1986 study by Dr. T. Yamada and colleagues (Japan), all MS patients treated with HBOT experienced a very significant decrease in the number of relapses. In 1990, Oriani (Palermo, Italy) studied patients with low KDS (Kurtzke disability scores), comparing 22 controls with 22 patients treated weekly for a year. The treated patients exhibited a significant improvement. Pallotta (Paris, France) followed 22 patients for 8 years, treating them all with an initial 20 HBO treatments. The eleven who continued with 2 exposures every 20 days dramatically decreased relapses; the group which received only an initial course of treatment worsened over time.

Another study tested the effects of hyperbaric oxygen on the T and B lymphocytes of patients who had suffered MS an average of more than 9 years. Ninety percent of patients tested demonstrated immune modulation after hyperbaric treatments. (Immune modulation is how researchers believe the ABCR drugs provide long-term improvement in the course of the disease.) These studies reiterated the effectiveness of hyperbaric pressures at 1.5 ATA or below for longer treatment times and suggested higher pressures might have a negative impact on the immune system.

The blood-brain barrier depends heavily on oxygen to function correctly. When the blood-brain barrier is damaged, brain tissues swell, inhibiting the delivery of oxygen. HBOT delivers oxygen even into areas not served by the circulatory system, allowing the BBB and underlying tissues to heal and restoring the ability of nerves to transmit impulses. The effectiveness of HBOT depends on whether the injured cells are truly dead, or if they are merely subsisting. Dr. Neubauer has emphasized the importance of early treatment, while there is still the potential to restore lost function. At the same time, even long-term patients have experienced dramatic improvement.

To help you discover what Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy can do for you, for a limited time, Dr. Spiegel will provide a free assessment to determine if you would benefit from this treatment. To schedule a hyperbaric oxygen therapy consultation to discuss how this treatment can help you, give our office a call.