PMID- 34547778 OWN - NLM STAT- MEDLINE DCOM- 20210923 LR - 20221001 IS - 1833-3516 (Print) IS - 2209-1491 (Electronic) IS - 1833-3516 (Linking) VI - 51 IP - 3 DP - 2021 Sep 30 TI - Efficacy and safety of hyperbaric oxygen treatment in SARS-COV-2 (COVID-19) pneumonia: a systematic review. PG - 271-281 LID - 10.28920/dhm51.3.271-281 [doi] AB - INTRODUCTION: The need for intubation and mechanical ventilation among COVID-19 patients is associated with high mortality rates and places a substantial burden on the healthcare system. There is a strong pathophysiological rationale suggesting that hyperbaric oxygen treatment (HBOT), a low-risk and non-invasive treatment, may be beneficial for COVID-19 patients. This systematic review aimed to explore the potential effectiveness and safety of HBOT for treating patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Medline, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar were searched from December 2019 to February 2021, without language restrictions. The grey literature was searched via an internet search engine and targeted website and database searches. Reference lists of included studies were searched. Independent reviewers assessed studies for eligibility and extracted data, with disagreements resolved by consensus or a third reviewer. Risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle Ottawa Scale. Data were summarised descriptively. RESULTS: Six publications (one cohort study, five case reports/series) met the inclusion criteria with a total of 37 hypoxaemic COVID-19 patients treated with HBOT. Of these 37 patients, the need for intubation and mechanical ventilation and in-hospital survival were assessed for 26 patients across three studies. Of these 26 patients, intubation and mechanical ventilation were not required for 24, and 23 patients survived. No serious adverse events of HBOT in COVID-19 patients were reported. No randomised trials have been published. CONCLUSIONS: Limited and weak evidence from non-randomised studies including one propensity-matched cohort study suggests HBOT is safe and may be a promising intervention to optimise treatment and outcomes in hypoxaemic COVID-19 patients. Randomised controlled studies are urgently needed. CI - Copyright: This article is the copyright of the authors who grant Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine a non-exclusive licence to publish the article in electronic and other forms. FAU - Boet, Sylvain AU - Boet S AD - Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, The Ottawa Hospital, Ottawa, Canada. AD - Clinical Epidemiology Program, The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada. AD - Francophone Affairs, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. AD - Dr Sylvain Boet, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Hyperbaric Medicine Unit, The Ottawa Hospital, 501 Smyth Rd, Critical Care Wing 1401, Ottawa, K1H 8L6, Ontario, Canada, sboet@toh.ca. FAU - Etherington, Cole AU - Etherington C AD - Clinical Epidemiology Program, The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada. FAU - Djaiani, George AU - Djaiani G AD - Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada. FAU - Tricco, Andrea C AU - Tricco AC AD - Knowledge Translation Program, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto, Toronto, Canada. AD - Epidemiology Department and Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. FAU - Sikora, Lindsey AU - Sikora L AD - Health Sciences Library, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. FAU - Katznelson, Rita AU - Katznelson R AD - Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada. LA - eng PT - Journal Article PT - Systematic Review PL - Australia TA - Diving Hyperb Med JT - Diving and hyperbaric medicine JID - 101282742 RN - S88TT14065 (Oxygen) SB - IM MH - *COVID-19 MH - Cohort Studies MH - Humans MH - *Hyperbaric Oxygenation MH - Oxygen MH - SARS-CoV-2 PMC - PMC8608448 OTO - NOTNLM OT - Hyperbaric medicine OT - Hypoxia OT - Infection COIS- Conflict of interest and funding No conflicts of interest were declared. Dr Tricco was funded by a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Knowledge Synthesis. Dr Boet was supported by The Ottawa Hospital Anesthesia Alternate Funds Association and the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa with a Tier 2 Clinical Research Chair. EDAT- 2021/09/22 06:00 MHDA- 2021/09/24 06:00 PMCR- 2022/09/30 CRDT- 2021/09/21 20:33 PHST- 2021/03/08 00:00 [received] PHST- 2021/05/29 00:00 [accepted] PHST- 2021/09/21 20:33 [entrez] PHST- 2021/09/22 06:00 [pubmed] PHST- 2021/09/24 06:00 [medline] PHST- 2022/09/30 00:00 [pmc-release] AID - 10.28920/dhm51.3.271-281 [doi] PST - ppublish SO - Diving Hyperb Med. 2021 Sep 30;51(3):271-281. doi: 10.28920/dhm51.3.271-281.