New meta-analysis: HBOT lowers Fournier's gangrene mortality — our take

A January 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis in Medical Gas Research (Patel and Batura, London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust) pooled 13 retrospective studies covering 322 HBOT patients and 366 controls. Adjunctive hyperbaric oxygen therapy was associated with significantly lower mortality in Fournier's gangrene. Hospital length of stay and number of surgical debridements did not differ significantly.

That is a meaningful signal for emergency and surgical programs. Fournier's gangrene has a high mortality rate and every hour matters. The authors correctly frame HBOT as adjunctive — used after prompt surgical debridement and antimicrobial therapy, not as primary treatment — and note that optimal pressure, session duration, and session count remain undetermined.

What this means for practitioners: if your facility takes emergency necrotizing infection referrals, chamber availability and staff readiness are the difference between using this evidence and reading about it. A chamber that requires third-party service every time it alarms, or lacks the pressure envelope your surgical team needs, will not survive the workflow of a real trauma referral pattern.

Prestige Hyperbaric delivers hospital-grade monoplace and multiplace chambers built for real clinical use, with installation and service handled by our own team. If you are evaluating chambers for surgical adjunct or wound-care programs, we help you match the equipment to the protocol. Reach out through prestigehyperbaric.com.

Source: PubMed — Medical Gas Research