Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can improve blood glucose balance in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can improve glucose homeostasis in patients with type 2 diabetes: a mechanism similar to the involvement of the carotid body in regulation.

The carotid bodies (CBs) are peripheral chemoreceptors that respond to hypoxia by increasing minute ventilation and activating the sympathetic nervous system. In addition to their role in regulating ventilation, we recently demonstrated that CBs also modulate peripheral insulin sensitivity. Given that CB function is functionally inhibited by hyperoxia and that hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) can improve fasting blood glucose levels in diabetic patients, we investigated the effects of HBOT on glucose tolerance in patients with type 2 diabetes. Volunteers with indications for HBOT were recruited from the Aquatic and Hyperbaric Medicine Center of the Portuguese Navy and divided into two groups: a group of patients with type 2 diabetes and a control group. Each group underwent 20 sessions of HBOT. An oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed both before and after the first HBOT session. The study included 16 diabetic patients and 16 age- and sex-matched controls. Fasting blood glucose levels in the diabetic patients were 143.5 ± 12.62 mg/dL, compared to 92.06 ± 2.99 mg/dL in the control group. In diabetic patients, pre-HBOT fasting blood glucose was 280.25 ± 22.29 mg/dL, and post-OGTT blood glucose was 280.25 ± 22.29 mg/dL. After 20 HBOT sessions, both fasting blood glucose and 2-hour post-OGTT blood glucose significantly decreased. In the control group, HBOT did not alter either fasting blood glucose or post-OGTT blood glucose. Our results suggest that HBOT can improve glucose tolerance in diabetic patients and indicate that HBOT may serve as a therapeutic intervention for type 2 diabetes.

Note: OGTT stands for Oral Glucose Tolerance Test, which is a medical test designed to assess the body’s ability to metabolize glucose. The specific procedure involves asking the subject to drink 75 grams of anhydrous glucose or 82.5 grams of glucose containing one molecule of water while fasting, and then monitoring changes in blood glucose levels over a period of two hours.

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