Study finds no recovery benefit from HBOT after IVDD surgery

Version 1 — Brief

A new retrospective study in the American Journal of Veterinary Research found that adjunctive hyperbaric oxygen therapy, or HBOT, did not improve recovery of deep pain perception in dogs that underwent hemilaminectomy for thoracolumbar intervertebral disk disease after presenting without deep pain perception in the pelvic limbs. The review covered client-owned dogs treated from January 2014 through December 2024 and compared dogs that received HBOT after surgery with dogs that did not. The finding adds to a thin evidence base around HBOT in canine spinal cord injury, where biologic rationale has often outpaced clinical proof. (public-pages-files-2025.frontiersin.org)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this is a useful reality check on a high-interest adjunct that can add cost, logistics, and expectations for pet parents during an already urgent, expensive IVDD case. In dogs with complete loss of pain perception, surgery remains the main evidence-based intervention, and published guidance still places expected functional recovery after surgical management at roughly 50% to 60%, even before considering adjunctive therapies. Reviews of emerging treatments for severe canine IVDD have also noted that many add-on approaches, including HBOT, still lack strong controlled clinical evidence. (acvs.org)

What to watch: Watch for the full AJVR paper’s detailed statistics, subgroup findings, and whether prospective studies test HBOT in narrower populations or with standardized treatment protocols. (public-pages-files-2025.frontiersin.org)