Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for autism: what the research shows

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy means a child breathes pure oxygen in a special pressurized chamber, similar to what divers use. The method is genuinely used in medicine, but for other purposes: it helps with decompression sickness, carbon monoxide poisoning, and healing certain wounds. Some centers offer it for autism too, on the idea that extra oxygen might improve brain function. Before signing up for a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for autism, it's worth knowing what the research on this specific use actually found.

What the research found

In 2016, the Cochrane Collaboration published a review on exactly this question (Xiong et al., 2016). The researchers looked for controlled experiments and found only one, with 60 children with autism. Some children received sessions in a pressurized chamber, others in a chamber with normal air pressure, so the conditions were as similar as possible and the only real difference was the method itself.

In other words, no noticeable difference in communication, behavior, or thinking was found between the groups, on any measure. Meanwhile, minor ear barotrauma (which happens from the pressure change, similar to scuba diving) occurred noticeably more often in the pressurized group than in the control group.

What this means in practice

One experiment with 60 children isn't a lot, so it's too soon to say the method definitely never helps with anything. But so far, the one good-quality study found no benefit for autism symptoms, and there's a small but real risk (discomfort and minor ear injuries). That's worth weighing against the cost of a course and the time a family will spend on it.

• Ask what research the recommendation is based on. One experiment with 60 children is the entire body of evidence available today.
• Ask who assessed the results and how. In a good-quality study, this is done by a specialist who doesn't know which child received sessions, otherwise it's easy to see what you want to see.
• Ask about ear barotrauma specifically. It's the most frequently documented side effect of the method.
• Don't drop proven methods for this one. Time and budget spent on a course without confirmed benefit is time and budget not spent on methods that do work.

What we offer instead

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy isn't the only method that carries more hope than data: if you'd like the bigger picture on other alternative methods, we've covered a large scientific review of 19 of them in a separate article: Myths about autism treatment. Unlike it, applied behavior analysis (ABA) has been tested in dozens of controlled studies specifically for its effect on a child's communication, behavior, and thinking.

You can start with a free thirty-minute consultation, where we'll talk honestly about which of the methods offered to you are backed by research and which aren't.