Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine

Hyperbaric oxygen chamber

While many wounds are easily treatable at home and heal on their own, some require specialized treatment. UConn Health’s Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine offers patients advanced wound treatment and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Wound Care

Proper wound care is critical for hard-to-heal or non-healing wounds. These wounds may result from pressure, trauma, or infection. If not treated, they can grow into more significant health and quality-of-life issues, such as limb amputations or even life-threatening infections. Underlying conditions like diabetes, circulation problems, and radiation treatment can cause chronic wound problems.

Each wound patient referred to UConn Health is closely assessed and receives a customized treatment plan to address the underlying cause of their condition and accelerate the healing of their wound.

UConn Health’s Wound Care Areas of Expertise

  • Diabetic foot ulcers
  • Venous ulcers
  • Pressure injuries/ulcers
  • Non-healing, post-surgical wounds
  • Traumatic wounds
  • Arterial/ischemic ulcers
  • Radiation wounds or injuries (internal or external)
  • Compromised skin flaps and grafts
  • Crush injuries
  • Any wound that is not healing or is of concern

UConn Health’s Traditional and Advanced Wound Care Techniques

  • Diagnostic testing (can include vascular testing, blood tests, x-rays)
  • Nutritional evaluation
  • Infection control
  • Specialized dressings
  • Pressure-relieving devices
  • Debridement (removal of dead or infected tissue)
  • Patient education
  • Cellular, acellular, matrix-like products (CAMPs), also called skin substitutes
  • Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2) therapy

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy is an outpatient, doctor-prescribed medical treatment to enhance the body’s ability to heal. It is provided in a private, state-of-the-art chamber to speed up a wound’s healing.

HBO uses oxygen under pressure to enhance the body’s natural ability to heal. Patients breathe 100% oxygen inside a chamber pressurized at two-to-three times greater than atmospheric pressure. The treatment causes an increase in plasma and tissue oxygen, which stimulates angiogenesis, the process of new blood vessels forming, and fights infection to speed healing. In most cases, HBO is prescribed in addition to primary treatment but is considered the primary treatment for a few conditions.

UConn Health’s HBO Areas of Expertise

  • Diabetic foot ulcers
  • Chronic bone infections (osteomyelitis)
  • Non-healing surgical skin flaps and grafts
  • Radiation therapy symptoms (pain, wounds, rectal or bladder bleeding)
  • Crush injuries
  • Certain types of sudden hearing loss
  • Sudden vision loss

The wound center’s expansive expertise includes patient access to UConn Health’s vascular surgery, limb salvage, infection prevention, plastic surgery, and podiatry services.

Location

UConn Health Procedures Center
150 Academic Way
Farmington, CT 06030

To Reach the Center, Refer a Patient, or Schedule an Appointment

Call 860-679-2420

Meet Our Team