title: Hyperbaric oxygen therapy accelerates vascularization in keratinized oral mucosal surgical flaps.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is thought to promote vascular regeneration in wounds. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of HBOT in advancing vascular regeneration in healing oral mucosal surgical flaps.
  
  
  METHODS
  A palatine partial-thickness mucosal flap was raised in 10 male-specific pathogen-free New Zealand White rabbits. Randomized into 2 groups of 5 animals each (control and HBOT), functional capillary density was measured preoperatively (baseline), and immediately postoperatively until day 21 using sidestream dark-field video microscopy. Ten HBOT sessions were administered over the course of 2 weeks at 2.5 atmospheres (2.5 bar O2 /90 minutes).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to compare the HBOT and control group on the sequential functional capillary density measurements. A significant interaction effect was present between time and group (F [8, 64] = 9.60; p < .0001) resulting from a significant increase in microcirculation in the HBOT group relative to the control group on days 7, 9, and 11.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that HBOT is capable of advancing wound vascular regeneration in healing keratinized oral mucosal flaps.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Renée
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Helmers
authors.forename: Dan M J
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Milstein
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: van Hulst
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Lange
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006931:Hyperbaric Oxygenation; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation / Q000502:physiology; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000601:surgery*; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic; D011817:Rabbits; D013524:Surgical Flaps / Q000098:blood supply*; D013997:Time Factors; D014945:Wound Healing
keywords: angiogenesis; capillary density; hyperbaric oxygen therapy; microcirculation; oral mucosa; sidestream dark-field imaging; wound healing