Page 65 - Effects of radiotherapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy on oral microcirculation Renee Helmers

HBOT and vascular regeneration in oral mucosal flaps
Comparison of all normalized microvascular measurements revealed a significant interaction effect between time and group (F (8, 64) = 9.60, p < 0.0001) resulting from a significant increase in microcirculation in the HBOT group relative to the control group on days 7, 9 and 11 [Fig. 4].
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Figure 4. Comparison of normalized functional capillary density (FCD) measurements between groups (independent-samples t-test). FCD measurements were performed preoperatively (baseline), immediately postoperatively, and subsequently on postoperative days 2, 4, 7, 9, 11, 14, and 21. All data are presented as mean ± SD.
DISCUSSION
The purpose of the present study was to investigate vascular regeneration dynamics in healing oral mucosal surgical flaps under the influence of HBOT. Our results suggest that HBOT is capable of yielding a response in wound vascular regeneration dynamics, as indicated by elevated FCD (relative to control). Equally important, our results also demonstrate that continuous microvascular measurements, used as an objective parameter to qualitatively evaluate wound status, can be utilized to quantify the progress of vascular regeneration following HBO-mediated healing in keratinized oral mucosal flaps.
Wound vascular regeneration and adequate oxygenation are essential for establishing a stable wound microenvironment to support tissue repair and restoration of anatomical function. Previous studies have confirmed a beneficial effect of HBOT on perfusion or neovascularization in chronic and non-chronic wounds.8,11,13,20,22,29,30 In an experimental study Hopf et al. graded neovascularization subcutaneously in mice by histological assessment after HBOT and found a greater and dose-dependent angiogenic response in a hyperbaric group compared to controls.8 This is supported by data of Zhao et
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