Oxygen improves blood flow, restores more function in spinal cord injuries

[royb]

so an O2 mask and breathing exercises mixed with physical exercise?

[Pauly1]

so an O2 mask and breathing exercises mixed with physical exercise?

* lots of green leafy vegetables = folic acid = build red blood cells that carry oxygen
* hyperbaric chamber

[tomsonite]

https://www.nature.com/nm/journal/va...l/nm.4331.html

I'm not sure if that link will work because I'm posting it from my university library - so if everyone else can't access the full paper please let me know.

If the paper is not public access I cannot share it due to copyright regulations, but will come back to answer some of the specific questions about the paper later. This paper is of great interest for me as it is related to my line of research.

[FellowHawkeye]

Very interesting! Makes me wonder why Hypoxic Therapy has seen good results. I did it on my own and it helped at first. Well, I wonder if it depends on your current saturation level on how helpful more oxygen will be. Mine IS very high, but not 100 percent and maybe that's not high enough to jumpstart my damaged spinal cord. Bears looking into. -Jan

[tomsonite]

So here are some general answers to questions that have been in the thread so far:

-This study was done only on rats.

-Neurons don't necessarily die after injury. Most people with SCI have surviving neurons below the injury, but they don't function properly because they are no longer connected to the brain.

-Normal air that we all breathe at sea level is 21% oxygen, 78% nitrogen, and 1% other. In this study, rats were given 100% oxygen, 95% oxygen+5% CO2 (carbon dioxide), 10% CO2, or interestingly, 10% oxygen (hypoxia) - all improved tissue oxygenation. Extra O2 and pharmacology (drugs) improved walking function in incomplete rats - high CO2 or low oxygen were not tested directly to improve function.


-The authors commented that they think anything that increases blood flow - including physical exercise - will improve tissue oxygenation in the spinal cord below the level of injury, at least temporarily.


-Intermittent hypoxia improves motor function through a completely different mechanism than this studyr. Intermittent hypoxia makes a motor neuron more excitable. In this paper, improved blood flow/oxygen in the SC allowed all neurons - motor, sensory, and interneurons - to function better.

[FellowHawkeye]

Thanks for the extra info. I'm going to buy a Volumetric exerciser to build up my lungs more. I used one to get off ventilator in hospital after injury and they work well. Inhalers might work too...

[comad]

Dr. Bennett has also mentioned some possible enzime blockers... apparently cells around small
"vents" that stopping blood flow self producing enzimes to cause contractions of capillars.
So...possible medication, "enzime blocker", might open valves & blood flow If I understood well.

If in human trial dimercaprol drug [from Dr.Shi newest research] kill acrolein poison formed in our nerves
we can see some fantastic chemical cocktail helper along with other methods & therapies.

[quadfather]

I love oxygen