Ozone therapy consists in the application of a mixture of oxygen and medical ozone in the body for the treatment of multiple diseases.
What does the treatment consist of?
There are different ways of administration:
- Paravertebral route: canal stenosis, low back pain, sciatica, radiculopathies, cauda equina syndrome, osteoarthritis and other degenerative problems of the spine, herpes zoster, fibromyalgia, neuropathies and herniated discs.
- Rectal insufflation: intestinal dysbiosis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, fistulas, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, rectal cancer.
- Intramuscular route: in trigger zones where the patient has a greater pain, tendinitis, epicondylitis.
- Major autohemotherapy: osteomyelitis, abscesses with fistulas, advanced ischemic diseases, age-related macular degeneration, neurodegenerative diseases, chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, acute and chronic infectious diseases, cancer asthenia and tolerance to chemotherapy, autoimmune diseases, rheumatic diseases, psoriasis, Crohn’s disease, senile dementia, pulmonary diseases, skin diseases and multiple organ dysfunction.
- Minor autohemotherapy: recurrent infections, infectious diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, allergic diseases, neurological diseases, vascular diseases, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory rheumatic diseases, menstrual disorders, metrorrhagia, premenstrual syndrome and pain management.
- Vaginal insufflation: recurrent vulvovaginitis refractory to medical treatment, bacterial vaginal infections, vaginosis, viral vaginal infections, HPV, mycosis (recurrent candidiasis), cervical dysplasia and inflammation, endometriosis and endometritis.
- Intra-articular route: painful pathology and joint inflammation, active forms of gonarthrosis, hip arthrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, synovitis, retractile capsulitis, chronic diseases of the shoulder joint and joint pathology in small joints.
How long does the treatment last?
Each ozone therapy session lasts approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour.
The duration of the results obtained with this technique will depend on the type of pathology and history of the patient and the lifestyle he/she has. Ideally, the patient should be followed up during the first year in order to be able to analyze its evolution.
Are there any contraindications?
There are 2 types of contraindications that should be taken into account before performing ozone therapy:
– Absolute contraindication: Favism, which is the severe deficit of the enzyme glucose phosphate dehydrogenase. This enzyme is necessary to supply the glutathione system with hydrogen, which is in charge of buffering the oxidation that lipoperoxides will produce in red blood cells.
– Relative contraindications: thrombocytopenia or low platelet levels, deficit in the coagulation system, advanced alterations of the cardiovascular system or decompensated, hyperthyroidism, convulsive states and uncontrolled anemia.
Taking into account these contraindications and the patient’s personal history, the Family Medicine specialist should perform a blood test before starting the ozone therapy sessions to make sure that the patient can undergo the treatment without presenting any problem or adverse effect.