A key factor in the delayed healing of injuries is a lack of oxygen (“hypoxia”).
Breathing oxygen at high pressure allows large quantities to be dissolved in the blood, such that the amount reaching the damaged hypoxic tissues can be increased to 20 or more times its normal level. This has many positive benefits:
- Reduction of swelling (oedema) of the tissues, which allows more blood to reach the area
- Reduction of scar tissue formation
- Stimulation of collagen formation and cross-linking, strengthening the wound repair
- Stimulation of new blood vessel formation
- Enhanced activity of white blood cells that fight infection
Together, these mechanisms enhance and accelerate injury healing, and therefore help to return sportspeople to their game more quickly.
