Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Children and Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder determined by a complex of factors (genetic and environmental). On a pathophysiological basis hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) has been suggested as an effective therapeutic method in ASD, and thus many parents/guardians attempt to treat their child with ASD using this method. Therefore, this review aimed to verify the significant therapeutic value of this method for individuals with ASD. The literature review included all articles from the last 5 years (2015–2021) that met the inclusion criteria—both original papers and literature reviews. None of the 10 literature reviews indicated that HBOT was a clearly effective form of therapy in the case of ASD. Two out of four papers presenting the results of the intervention studies also did not recommend the use of this form of therapy in children with ASD. The results of the other two studies were not entirely relevant to the purpose of this review because one study had no control group, while the other study focused solely on auditory processing disorders. A review of the literature on whether HBOT as a therapy significantly affects the symptoms of ASD does not confirm its effectiveness.