Wound care and hyperbaric chamber therapy in Walterboro, SC

Having a non-healing wound can affect your quality of life, but the experienced team at Colleton Medical Center is here to help. Our outpatient Advanced Wound Center provides comprehensive wound care and treatment services.

For more information about our wound care services, you can call the Advanced Wound Center at (843) 539-2273.

Types of wounds we treat

Our wound care specialists do everything possible to set you up for successful healing. We provide education about proper wound care, signs of complications and ways to prevent wounds or infections from recurring. We treat a variety of acute and chronic wounds, including:

  • Complex soft tissue wounds
  • Diabetic wounds
  • Infected wounds
  • Non-healing surgical wounds
  • Pressure ulcers
  • Traumatic wounds
  • Vasculitic ulcers
  • Venous stasis ulcers

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT)

During HBOT, a patient is placed in a hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber. The air pressure is then increased two to three times higher than normal. This environment allows the lungs to gather extra oxygen, which promotes the healing of wounds—especially those that are difficult to heal or affected by severe soft tissue infections. HBOT may be used to treat:

  • Chronic bone infections
  • Crush injuries
  • Injuries to skin or bones as a side effect of radiation therapy
  • Non-healing skin grafts and flaps
  • Non-healing wounds, such as diabetic foot ulcers

Wounds that benefit from HBOT

HBOT improves the healing of wounds—especially those that are difficult to heal or affected by severe soft tissue infections. HBOT may be used to treat:

  • Carbon monoxide poisoning
  • Central retinal artery occlusion (sudden vision caused by artery blockage in the retina)
  • Chronic bone infections (chronic refractory osteomyelitis)
  • Crush injuries
  • Injuries to skin or bone as a side effect of radiation therapy
  • Non-healing skin grafts and flaps
  • Non-healing wounds, such as diabetic foot ulcers
  • Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (hearing loss caused by nerve damage to the inner ear)

What to expect during HBOT

Our goal is to make you feel as comfortable as possible during your session. HBOT lasts approximately two hours. Your wound care team will carefully monitor your progress throughout treatment.

The only sensation you will experience is during pressurization, which is the beginning stage of treatment. The slowly increasing pressure will push on your eardrums, similar to the feeling you would experience when landing during a flight or diving to the bottom of a pool. Your wound care specialist will go over some ways to relieve this pressure.

Side effects of HBOT vary and may include a temporary change in your vision. Do not change your eyewear prescription during or immediately after therapy.