Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Aesthetic Medicine and Anti-Aging: A Systematic Review

Introduction: Continued interest in the optimization of recovery in aesthetics has led to the exploration of adjunctive therapies. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) serves as one such therapy that may have an impact in this field. HBOT is hypothesized to improve ischemia, reduce swelling, and minimize secondary hypoxic tissue damage. Its application in aesthetic procedures aims to improve healing, reduce downtime, and enhance the overall quality of outcomes.

Methods: A systematic review was performed, searching the PubMed database. The protocol was developed following the Preferred Reporting for Items for Systematic Reviews-Protocols (PRISMA) guidelines. Included studies evaluated the use of HBOT in aesthetic surgery, medicine, and longevity and anti-aging. Selected studies matched predetermined criteria according to the employed intervention and outcomes.

Results: The systematic review was performed in April 2024, with the primary search yielding 591 articles. Abstract review resulted in 53 articles of potential relevance. Comprehensive review of the articles and manual reference checks was performed, independently, by two authors. This yielded a total of 15 articles meeting inclusion criteria.

Conclusions: HBOT may serve a valuable adjunct in aesthetic surgery, medicine, and anti-aging. However, the evidence to support its use, and justify its cost, is limited. This review serves as an update, capturing the currently available literature on HBOTs use in aesthetics, and provides the first discussion of HBOTs role in anti-aging. It underscores the need for future large-scale, randomized trials with standardization of HBOT protocols being employed to allow for full assessment of HBOTs utility in this clinical space.

Level of evidence v: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .