avid Knight, the World Enduro Champion

Posted 25th May 2011

3FM - A local sporting star is praising the work of the Island's Hyperbaric Chamber.
David Knight, the World Enduro Champion, has recently had hip surgery forcing his season to
a halt.
He was still in with a chance of winning the World Championships and was leading both
British Championship series when he needed to take time out due to injury.
The 32 year old from Ballaugh is on crutches after his op and has been using the facility daily to ensure a speedy recovery.
He told 3FM; 'The oxygen therapy facility undoubtedly speeds up my recovery, we're lucky to have it here. It's always helped me, from an athletes point of view it's brilliant to be able to come to Douglas. I don't know what I would do without it.' (audio above)
The Hyperbaric Chamber, which costs around £200,000 a year to run, relies mostly on donations to help between 35 and 40 people a day.
The registered nurse Clare Duchars told 3FM they treat a huge variety of injuries that they can help relieve pain and get people back in to the work place as quickly as possible.

Women's World Cup, and a torn ACL knocked her out of the 2007 tournament

Posted 6th July 2011

Associated Press - A broken leg had ended what slim chances she'd had at making the 2003 Women's World Cup, and a torn ACL knocked her out of the 2007 tournament. This was likely the 33-year-old's last chance to play in a World Cup, and here it was in jeopardy yet again.
"I was starting to think I had the World Cup jinx," Mitts said Sunday. "Luckily, everything does happen for a reason, so I find myself here at a World Cup after all of my hard work. To be able to be here, it really is a cliche but it's a dream come true for me."
The top-ranked United States opens group play Tuesday against North Korea.
Mitts has been an integral part of the U.S. squad the last seven years, starting all but 15 of the 111 games she's played in since 2004. She helped anchor the defense as the Americans won the gold medal at both the Athens Olympics and Beijing Games. In Beijing, the Americans posted three shutouts, including a 1-0 overtime victory over Brazil in the gold medal game.
But the World Cup is the premier event in soccer, and no elite player's career is truly complete without playing in at least one.
"This is our Super Bowl," Mitts said.
There was no question Mitts would have been part of the U.S. team in 2007. She had logged the second-most minutes of any U.S. player in 2006, and started the Americans' first seven games of 2007. But in a May 12 friendly against Canada, Mitts felt her left knee give and knew immediately that she'd blown the anterior cruciate ligament.
With the World Cup only four months away, there was no way Mitts could make it back in time.
"I wasn't crying from the pain, I was crying from the fact I knew I wasn't going to be able to be a part of that World Cup," she said. "Obviously it was very devastating, the timing of it all. But at the same time, it is what it is and nothing can be done about it."
Mitts worked as an analyst for ESPN during the World Cup, watching from the United States as the Americans were dismantled by Brazil in a 4-0 loss in the semifinals.
"It's difficult not to be out there with your teammates when you know how hard you've worked," she said. "The other thing is, when you see them struggling, obviously you want to be able to be there and help. Once again, nothing you can do about it, so you just try to help from afar."
Mitts returned for the Beijing Olympics, and was a model of durability until January. She helped the Philadelphia Freedom to the WPS championship game in September, then played every minute of three games during World Cup qualifying. When the U.S. was forced into a home-and-home playoff against Italy to earn a trip to Germany, Mitts started each game.
And when the Americans returned to China in January for the Four Nations tournament, Mitts was on the field for all 90 minutes of the opener, a 2-1 loss to Sweden.
The next morning, her right hamstring hurt so badly she couldn't lift her leg.
"I knew I still had time at that point," she said.
She threw herself into rehab, spending three and four hours each day in a hyperbaric chamber and getting electronic massage to speed blood flow and accelerate repair of the muscle. She did strengthening exercises and got her hips adjusted. Finally, in April, she was ready to go again and joined the U.S. team at its World Cup training camp.
Then, two days before the women faced fellow top seed Japan in an exhibition in Columbus, Ohio, Mitts felt that familiar tug in her hamstring during training.
"That's when I was kind of like, 'Gosh, now I'm really going to be pushing it here,' because I knew time kind of wasn't on my side," she said. "I just went back to what I'd done before with my rehab. Honestly, I attribute that dedication to the reason why I'm here."
When U.S. coach Pia Sundhage announced her World Cup roster, Mitts' name was on it.
"I was relieved more than anything," she said. "I had been so stressed out from January until I found out I made it. I was trying to have a really positive outlook but at the same time, in the back of your mind you're thinking, 'Oh my gosh, is this my last chance?' Everything happens for a reason, and I'm here."
As will be her husband, St. Louis Rams quarterback A.J. Feeley.
Feeley didn't get to see his wife play in the Olympics because they overlapped with training camp. But with the NFL lockout, Feeley has time on his hands and will make his very first trip overseas for the second and third games of group play. The U.S. plays Colombia on July 2 in Sinsheim and faces Sweden on July 6 in Wolfsburg.
Mitts likely won't start, and there's a chance she may not even get off the bench.
She'll be in uniform, though, and that's all that matters.
"I know that my situation is definitely a little bit different now based on my injury," she said. "I'm extremely happy to be here and if I'm called upon, I will be ready. And if that means I'm sitting on the bench, I will be supporting my teammates 100 percent.

British Superbike Championship series

Posted 6th July 2011

Perthshire Advertiser - THE Harley-Davidson XR1200 Trophy was showcased alongside the premier British Superbike Championship series at Knockhill over the weekend.
And Perth rider Torquil Patterson was just delighted to get back on track after coming a cropper three weeks ago.
He took a painful tumble in a qualifying accident in the series at Thruxton and feared his season could be over.
Torquil came off his Harley and tore the ligament that holds the collar bone to his shoulder. After treatment which included spells in Dundee’s hyperbaric chamber and a series of intense physio sessions, he defied the odds to climb back onto the bike to race in round two at Knockhill.
With the Fife track wet for both the warm-up and qualifying sessions, Torquil demonstrated his undoubted skills and took second place on the grid for Sunday’s double header.
Sunday saw the rain relent and the track dry out.
In his first outing, Torquil made a promising start, although he almost came to grief on the first lap.
As the race progressed, some of the technical adjustments made to the bike hindered him and he slipped back to fifth place by the end.
Minor adjustments were made and he was good to go for race two.
Torquil was involved in a no-quarter battle for fourth and fifth place, riding hard and showing his overtaking skills.
Although he slipped fifth, Torquil made headway into the gap in front of him, quickly catching those ahead with five laps left. His sights were set on a strong finish and the podium.
Then another bike’s engine blew and spewed oil all over the track – causing the race to be halted prematurely and the order declared as it was.
His Edinburgh Harley-Davidson backed XR1200 now heads for round three in a fortnight at the new Snetterton 300 circuit in Norfolk.

Two football players with TBI/CTE are herewith shown to benefit from being treated with hyperbaric oxygen

Posted 6th July 2011

MedicalGasResearch.com - Two football players with TBI/CTE are herewith shown to benefit from being treated with hyperbaric oxygen as documented by neurocognitive examonations and functional brain imaging, in one case treatment commenced decades after the brain injury.

Saints receiver Marques Colston has one message for any injury that attempts to bring him down

Posted 29th September 2011

WWLTV.com Sports - METAIRIE, La. – Saints receiver Marques Colston has one message for any injury that attempts to bring him down – don’t mess with him.
Using mind of matter and a bit of new-age technology, New Orleans’ big-bodied receiver said injuries alone can’t bring him down.
“I don’t let my body heal; I heal my body,” Colston said Thursday. “It’s kind of an aggressive approach I take and it has worked well for me over the years.”
But in spite of having what he termed a “high pain threshold,” Colston said his secret to fast-healing – he’ll return two weeks early from a broken collarbone that was supposed to keep him out four weeks – is a hyperbaric chamber that he sleeps in at night.
“Especially times like now when I’m injured, I’ll sleep in it three or four nights a week,” Colston said.
Colston bought the inflatable chamber in his second season after his chiropractor suggested he try his out. The receiver liked the way he felt and bought his own, which he keeps in the second-floor hallway of his house.
A hyperbaric chamber provides a high-oxygen environment that helps the body recover from a variety of maladies, including deep sea diving.
Colston doesn’t generally bring it on the road with him, but he said he took it to Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.
He broke his right clavicle in New Orleans’ season-opening loss to Green Bay on Sept. 8. A day later, he had surgery, which included putting a titanium plate on his collarbone with six screws, to help speed up the healing of the break.
Saints coach Sean Payton said Colston is being worked into Sunday’s game plan, when the Saints (2-1) play at Jacksonville (1-2). He won’t give the receiver a full game’s worth of work, however.
Colston understands.
“I feel like I could play the whole game but it’s just smart as well as the other guys have been playing to just work my way in and really spell those guys when they need it and get back into the groove when I get in,” Colston said.

THE AUSTRALIAN - South Africa paceman Dale Steyn in a hyperbaric chamber in Johannesburg

Posted 21st November 2011

THE AUSTRALIAN - South Africa paceman Dale Steyn in a hyperbaric chamber in Johannesburg. Picture: Twitter Source: Supplied SOUTH Africa's cricketers have a training aid which appears to be giving them an edge over Australian players who have been struggling with the altitude here.
The cricketers, particularly the fast bowlers, have been using a hyperbaric chamber as an aid to recovery, the use of which is controversial but not illegal.
Johannesburg, where the second Test is being played, is 1694m above sea level.
At that those height, the air is thin and the body has to work hard to keep up the oxygen supply to the blood.
At one point on the second day, fast bowler Peter Siddle was on his haunches and struggling to breathe, and young fast bowler Pat Cummins had to have an ice bath at tea on the first day to relieve his cramping legs.
The hyperbaric chamber theoretically enriches the oxygen supply to the body and can provide almost instant recovery.
...The use of such chambers is frowned on by the World Anti Doping Authority, but is not banned because their therapeutic effects are unproven.
Some medial experts claim they do not work as advertised.
Vernon Philander, who injured himself on the first day of the second Test, was seen in the chamber, which is in a gym, during the lunch break and Dale Steyn even tweeted a picture of himself receiving the treatment on Saturday night.
"Cricket SA hav got some new toys 4us to use," he posted. "This guy helps with recovery, improving blood circulation!"
Umpires monitor fielders' movements and dressing-rooms are checked if they have been off for two overs to ensure they are getting treatment, but there is nothing in the rules to stop them using the chambers during innings breaks or while their side is batting.
Manufacturers of the chambers sell them to athletes on the basis they improve circulation, increase oxygen-rich red blood cells and remove lactic acid.
The Japanese Olympic committee issued a warning to its athletes not to use the devices in the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics, triggering legal action from American manufacturers.
The chambers can be used as an aid to recovery from injury but are sold as a training aid.
Leading men's tennis player Novak Djokovic uses a $75,000 model three times a week.
"I think it really helps -- not with muscle but more with recovery after an exhausting set," he said during this year's US Open. "It's like a spaceship. It's very interesting technology."
American website Hypo2, which promotes the use of the treatment, makes a number of claims that might explain the benefits for cricketers.
"Mild hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides greatly increased oxygen saturation throughout the body, allowing the body to get the oxygen it needs to create ATP (Adenosine-5'-triphosphate) for energy and flush out the lactic acid that causes muscle fatigue," it says. "The elevated oxygen levels help athletes increase performance and recover more quickly after a workout. In addition, increased oxygen delivery to the brain facilitates brain function and enhances an athlete's ability to make the split-second decisions that can make a difference in the outcome of the game."
Several AFL and NRL players, including St Kilda star Nick Riewoldt and Wests Tigers centre Chris Lawrence, have used hyperbaric chambers to speed up recovery from injury.
Lawrence underwent several sessions in a chamber at the NSW Institute of Sport as he recovered from a dislocated hip this year.
And Riewoldt spent up to four hours a day in a chamber in a bid to get fit for last year's finals series after suffering a severe hamstring injury.
"You talk about the one-percenters and these are the things we've got to try if it buys us a week or two," Riewoldt said.
"I think long-term is where the real benefit will come.
"If it heals that much stronger earlier on, I think long-term it will be a lot stronger and I'll be a lot better off because hamstrings can be fickle."
Breathing in an atmosphere of 100 per cent oxygen is believed to improve healing of wounds, reduce swelling and stimulate new blood vessel growth.

Pro Athletes do it! Oxygen

Pro athletes do it.
Do what you ask?

Receive oxygen when they are overly stressed or exerted during competition. Now that we’re headed into the summer months and water temperatures are rising, it’s time to think about doing the same with the bass we catch and hold during tournaments. A recent press release has some good data on using oxygen injection systems hooked into bass boat livewells.
Different bass boats have different livewell configurations. Most of them work similarly when it comes to keeping oxygen at an adequate level when a small limit of bass is in the livewell and the water is still relatively cool (<75F). Once temperatures start rising above that level, or you start catching Elite Series size limits of bass, they usually become woefully short when it comes to supplying enough oxygen to stave off delayed mortality. One way that solves this problem is to install an oxygen infusion system into your existing boats livewell system.