Watch Now: South Miami Expands Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine

November is National Diabetes Month, an annual observation with the goal of creating more awareness about diabetes, a disease that affects millions of adults and children in the U.S. Wound care is an important concern for many people who have diabetes. Wounds can be slow to heal for those with diabetes and that slow-healing condition can leave patients vulnerable to other complications. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is used for treating extremely chronic wounds that are not responding to conventional treatment.

A fourth hyperbaric chamber is now operational at South Miami Hospital for inpatients and outpatients with complex non-healing wounds, carbon monoxide poisoning, osteomyelitis, compromised skin grafts and flaps, necrotizing fasciitis, radiation tissue damage and other conditions.

Hyperbaric oxygen is a simple concept. The air we breathe is 21 percent oxygen. By providing 100 percent oxygen in a pressurized chamber, the patient receives 10 to 15 times more oxygen. This hyperbaric, or high-pressure, dose of oxygen offers many therapeutic benefits. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides one or more of the following:
• Increased oxygen to the injured tissue.
• Better formation of blood vessels.
• Advanced wound healing.
• Improved infection control.
• Preservation of damaged tissue.
• Elimination of toxic substances.
• Reduced effects of toxic substances.

Hyperbaric consult physicians at South Miami Hospital include Rodney Benjamin, M.D., Milton Jimenez, M.D., Jacky Blank, M.D., James Loewenherz, M.D. and Manuel Garcia-Frangie, M.D.  The Baptist Health South Florida News Team recently met with Dr. Jimenez. Watch now.

Related articles:

Wound Care 101 and Hyperbaric Treatments at Mariners Hospital
Watch Now: Hyperbaric Treatment for Decompression Sickness