Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment for non-diving related sudden hearing loss

[Duke Dive Medicine]

They need to tell Medicare and Blue Cross it is approved.

I'll buy you all of these that you want if you can get that done.

 

[tursiops]

I'll buy you all of these that you want if you can get that done.

LOL. Right. Your money is safe, I'm afraid.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

LOL. Right. Your money is safe, I'm afraid.

Believe it or not, they are amenable to reason. Blue Cross reimbursement criteria also vary from state to state. BCBS of North Carolina reimburses for all of the UHMS-approved indications. https://www.bluecrossnc.com/sites/d...alpolicy/hyperbaric_oxygen_pressurization.pdf

 

[Couv]

Well done on finding that @Duke Dive Medicine Can you work your magic on Tricare for Life? I'm not in need, but one never knows.

 

[rsingler]

@BurhanMuntasser , in addition to the relevant discussion of why it may help from a physiology standpoint, there is this paragraph from the UHMS paper:
Patients with moderate to profound ISSHL (≥ 41 dB) who present within 14 days of symptom onset should be considered for HBO2. While patients presenting after this time may experience improvement when treated with HBO2, the medical literature suggests that early intervention is associated with improved outcomes. The best evidence supports the use of HBO2 within two weeks of symptom onset.

So, there is a bit of time pressure to your friend's decision, if he has not already passed the 2-week mark.
I guess the key question for his doctor is whether he has diagnosed idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss, or whether he is actively considering other potential causes.
Good luck!

 

[BoltSnap]

@BurhanMuntasser , in addition to the relevant discussing of why it may help from a physiology standpoint, there is this paragraph from the UHMS paper:
Patients with moderate to profound ISSHL (≥ 41 dB) who present within 14 days of symptom onset should be considered for HBO2. While patients presenting after this time may experience improvement when treated with HBO2, the medical literature suggests that early intervention is associated with improved outcomes. The best evidence supports the use of HBO2 within two weeks of symptom onset.

So, there is a bit of time pressure to your friend's decision, if he has not already passed the 2-week mark.
I guess the key question for his doctor is whether he has diagnosed idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss, or whether he is actively considering other potential causes.
Good luck!

I believe that he came down with the symptoms 10 days ago. He just left to Istanbul few hours ago so he is still within the two week window.

This part from the papers matches in the most part what he told me:

"Idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss is classically defined as a hearing loss of at least 30 dB occurring within three days over at least three contiguous frequencies. The most common clinical presentation involves an individual experiencing a sudden unilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a sensation of aural fullness and vertigo."

 

[rsingler]

Hope it helps him!
Thanks for the feedback.

 

[tursiops]

@BurhanMuntasser , in addition to the relevant discussing of why it may help from a physiology standpoint, there is this paragraph from the UHMS paper:
Patients with moderate to profound ISSHL (≥ 41 dB) who present within 14 days of symptom onset should be considered for HBO2. While patients presenting after this time may experience improvement when treated with HBO2, the medical literature suggests that early intervention is associated with improved outcomes. The best evidence supports the use of HBO2 within two weeks of symptom onset.

So, there is a bit of time pressure to your friend's decision, if he has not already passed the 2-week mark.
I guess the key question for his doctor is whether he has diagnosed idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss, or whether he is actively considering other potential causes.
Good luck!

I'd like to correct an earlier statement I made, and comment on the above.
Federal Blue Cross (FEDBLUE) does in fact cover HBO2 for idiopathic SSNL, quoting the UHMS results.
However, the previous guidelines (under which I was treated) says it needs to be immediately after the loss to give a reasonable chance of success, and that conflicts with the guidelines to first do four weeks of transtympanic steriod injections. Catch-22.
The newest guidelines, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0194599819859885, published August 2019 (too late for me) say parallel treatment with steroids and HBO2 (if I understand them correctly) are possible, and best.
Again, this is Federal Blue Cross, not by the states or is it Medicare.

 

[BoltSnap]

Hope it helps him!
Thanks for the feedback.

Check your PM's and get back to me please.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

Well done on finding that @Duke Dive Medicine Can you work your magic on Tricare for Life? I'm not in need, but one never knows.

I only know that about BCBS of NC because that's the state I work in. I've dealt with them quite a bit.