A BREATH OF FRESH AIR FOR PATIENTS OXYGEN CHAMBER OFFERS COMFORT, SOME HEALING.

Byline: Amy Raisin Darvish Staff Writer

NEWHALL - At first glance, the tubular pod in Kerry Sander's chiropractic exam room looks like a contraption used to test the courage of contestants on TV's ``Fear Factor.''

But the hyperbaric chamber offers those struggling daily with painful ailments and diseases a chance at comfort, even if only for a day or two, said Sander, a chiropractor at the SCV Wellness Center in Newhall.

The chamber is neither a cure nor a substitute for prescribed medication. Instead, it offsets painful symptoms and promotes healing.

Harrison Lee, a doctor specializing in facial plastics and reconstructive surgery in Beverly Hills, has used hyperbaric oxygen therapy with some of his patients. He sees benefits, but said the jury's still out on the extent of its effectiveness.

Lee said he has heard about patients with neurological diseases such as Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis using the chamber, but has not seen enough research to draw a conclusion. But he agreed that the chamber can benefit diabetics suffering from circulation-related wounds, often to fingers and toes.

``It helps non-healing wounds,'' Lee said. ``The highly concentrated oxygen delivered to the tissue heals wounds twice as fast.''

The chamber is pressurized to 1.5 times the pressure of the atmosphere. The pressure saturates red blood cells with additional oxygen that is then carried to the body's muscles, organs and tissues.

The increased pressure also oxygenates the less viscous lymph and plasma fluids, ways to cycle oxygen through the body. This stimulates the growth of new vessels and speeds the healing process.

Sander said he has seen the most significant benefits in patients with Parkinson's, fibromyalgia and wounds associated with accidents and surgery. Patients spend an average of an hour in the chamber, where they can listen to music, read or just rest.

Linda Winegrad, a Santa Clarita grandmother, was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease - a neurological condition that causes tremors and muscle stiffness - in 2002 and went to see Sander soon after.

``I tend to shake internally as well as externally. The chamber slows that down,'' said Winegrad, 58. ``It's embarrassing to me, not to be able to control that. When my son was getting married, I went to the chamber two days before the wedding. I didn't shake once that whole weekend.''

An accountant who now works from home because of her illness, Winegrad said she tried to maintain her office job after the diagnosis but the tremors eventually proved too stressful. Stress, she said, is one of the worst triggers for people with Parkinson's.

Amy Raisin Darvish, [phone]

amy.raisin(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(color) Chiropractor Kerry Sander uses a hyperbaric chamber to help patients with assorted ailments.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer