OxyFile #61

TI:  Subatmospheric O2/O3 - Treatment of Therapy-Resistent Wounds 
     and Ulcerations*

DT:  1985

AU:  Horst Werkmeister

SO:  OzoNachrichten 4 (1985) Heft 3/4
     *Paper presented at the 7th Ozone World Congress Tokyo 9th - 
      12th Sept. 1985

AB:  The treatment of badly healing and generally also severely 
     infected wounds with an ozone/oxygen mixture has to take 
     places within an enclosed system.  The effect, in the form 
     of wound disinfection, enhanced circulatory perfusion and 
     stimulated granulation, which is already visible when gas is 
     applied inside what we call a bag - whereby the wound is 
     exposed to the ozone/oxygen mixture for a certain time 
     (approx. 30 minutes per day), is considerably increased when 
     subatmospheric or negative pressure is applied.  It is 
     principally the pronounced hyperemia produced by the 
     subatmospheric pressure, in combination with the 
     ozone/oxygen mixture, that stimulates the enzymatic 
     breakdown of necroses, the budding of connective tissue and 
     bloodvessels into the lesion, as well as the covering of the 
     wound with epithelium.  As, in the case of the patients 
     treated, we are generally dealing with persons of advanced 
     age who are immobile with circulatory disturbances, and who 
     for the most part are diabetics, the application of 
     subatmospheric gas constitutes a method of wound treatment 
     which is ideal on account of its easy application and 
     convenience to the patient.  A further advantage of the 
     method is the possibility of introducing the gas where the 
     wounds are undermined and fistulae are present, thus 
     producing an in-depth effect.