Scientists Reverse Brain Damage in Drowned Toddler?
Disclaimer: I am a neurologistThe enthusiastic replies on this thread are understandable, but disappointing to see: we all need to be less credulous regarding the lay science press, and especially the lay medical press.I would love nothing more than to have this kind of therapy be a reality for my patients. However, I am deeply skeptical of this report.Why? Because- hyperbaric oxygen therapy has a big industry of quackery behind it[1][2]- oxygen is a standard part of medical care and can just as easily be harmful as helpful- because there is just no way in hell that oxygen is going to reverse cell death.- this is in newsweek, and not a peer-reviewed journal.And if there was no cell death, then the recovery is almost inevitable.Some posters are skeptical because 15 minutes is impossible.On the contrary: the key point is the temperature. The article says the water was 4 degrees C. That is cold enough that you can recover fully. In fact, the most amazing recovery is also one of the best-documented: with a 66-minute submersion in Utah that was followed by complete recovery[3] (this is a far more interesting article than the original post - it was in 1988, and utilized extracorporeal rewarming). This observation was used to pursue hypothermia in other causes of anoxic injury, which is clinically used today. I'm sure the 66-minute case also got oxygen during the recovery, but to say that it was due to oxygen (which is standard of care) rather than the temperature is silly.Sorry to be a wet blanket, but this article is just clickbait junk.1. https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm364687.h...2. https://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/HBOT/hm01...3. http://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/26/science/the-doctor-s-world...