Ozone therapy

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Several controversial methods of alternative medicine are referred to as ozone therapy , in which the gas ozone (a three-atom oxygen molecule, O 3 ) is used. The germicidal and disinfecting effect of ozone is scientifically proven ; There is no scientifically verifiable evidence for special healing effects.

Alternative medicine

Applications

There are several applications in alternative medicine that use ozone:

  • In one form of autologous blood treatment , 60 to 200 ml of blood is taken from the patient's vein , mixed with an ozone- oxygen mixture and then injected intravenously back into the patient's vein. Sterile disposable material is used to minimize the risk of contamination by pathogenic germs. This treatment usually lasts about 20 minutes, depending on the amount of blood and the puncturability of the corresponding veins or possible concomitant medication (ACE inhibitors require slower re-infusions due to a possible drop in blood pressure), it can take up to 90 minutes.
  • In the so-called "small autologous blood treatment", only 10 to 20 ml of blood are taken, shaken with an oxygen / ozone mixture and then injected into the muscles.
  • In the intra-arterial injection, which was practiced in the past, 5 to 20 ml of oxygen / ozone mixture, for. B. injected into the large leg artery, where it should quickly dissolve in the blood. In principle, this procedure can result in an embolism as an undesirable complication.
  • With "rectal gassing" the patient is injected with a disposable catheter, which is inserted approx. 10 cm deep into the anus, up to 300 ml of an ozone-oxygen mixture with an enema syringe. The ozone comes into contact with the intestinal wall and is supposed to trigger chemical reactions similar to those that are supposed to take place extracorporeally in the glass bottle when the gas mixture is added to the blood in large autologous blood therapy.
  • The topical application of ozonated olive oil to infected wounds.
  • The external fumigation of wounds with ozone, also known as bag fumigation , when the ozone gas is concentrated around the affected skin areas with the help of a bag. The germs and fungi present on and in the skin are supposed to be killed. The method is carried out for venous, arterial or diabetic leg ulcers, infected "lacerations", surgical wounds that have been reopened due to wound infections or wounds that have been left open as a preventive measure , as well as infected fistulas (e.g. sacral dermoid fistulas or fistulas in Crohn's disease ).
  • the intra-articular and peri-articular ozone injection in osteoarthritis . In particular, this method can be observed in Italy and Spain for the treatment of lumbago and disc herniations . Several neurosurgeons practice the targeted injection (under radiological control with the image intensifier) ​​to the so-called facet joints of the vertebral bodies, occasionally even into the intervertebral discs (intradiscal injection) with alleged success rates of around 60 percent e.g. B. in "acute herniated disc".
  • subcutaneous ozone-oxygen injection under the skin is another therapeutic application of ozone.
  • In the past, inhalation of air containing ozone was also common (e.g. inhaler accessories for the Violet Ray healing device). Due to unpleasant side effects (irritation of the mucous membrane, headache), this is unusual today.

The direct enrichment of venous blood with oxygen is also referred to by alternative medicine as oxyvenation .

effect

It has been proven that ozone can kill bacteria , fungi and viruses . A short-term increase in blood flow is also considered to be proven, but other gases also have this effect, which is based on the fact that the vessels are briefly closed and react a little later with an expansion. Statements that ozone have a healing effect in serious illnesses such as cancer are not supported empirically.

A prospective placebo-controlled study from Poland showed that application of an ozone-oxygen mixture compared with pure oxygen therapy in the context of AHT (ozonated autohemotherapy, O3-AHT) had no significant difference on NK cells. In animal experiments on rats, researchers in Cuba were able to show that ozone administered into the abdominal cavity could reduce the liver cell damage later induced by carbon tetrachloride.

In an observational study published in 2005 without a control group, Italian researchers observed that the external application of ozone and ozonated olive oil had a beneficial effect on various skin diseases and circulatory disorders, and pointed out that ozone was both harmful and, from their point of view, therapeutically useful.

Indications

As indications for ozone therapy, the users name mainly circulatory disorders , varicose veins , viral infections, asthma , allergies , joint pain, but also cancer . Ozone enemas are used for constipation , hemorrhoids and ulcerative colitis . Wounds, skin fungus , eczema and anal fissures are treated with ozonated olive oil .

Contraindications and Risks

Ozone should not be used in acute myocardial infarction , internal bleeding, a hereditary disorder of the blood clotting after a stroke , hyperthyroidism , malfunction of the thyroid , chronic fungal infections, allergy and ozone during pregnancy . When taking anticoagulant drugs at the same time, there may be interactions. Vitamin C has an antioxidant effect and, in higher doses, can weaken the oxidative effect of ozone. It should therefore not be taken on the day of ozone therapy.

All ozone applications are medically controversial. One can often read on the websites of providers that such therapies are low-risk and that there are hardly any side effects. Such statements are classified as irresponsible by experts. The application of ozone to the patient should be done by a trained physician. As with any treatment, the risk depends on correct use. Before the technique of autologous autologous blood treatment was developed by Hans Woolf in 1961, there were a few incidents, as the ozone-oxygen mixture had previously been injected directly into the vein, with some incidents with fatal embolisms.

In autologous blood therapy, between 50 and 100 ml of blood is drawn into a sterile glass bottle with negative pressure and the ozone in the bottle - outside of the body - mixed. The ozone reacts completely within a very short time (5 min) with the blood in the bottle, so that during the subsequent re-infusion of the blood, no ozone directly enters the circulation, but only the reaction products from the blood resulting from oxidation the ozone. This principle corresponds to the hormesis, a hypothesis already formulated by Paracelsus .

The described direct intravenous application of ozone is prohibited in Germany and is expressly rejected by the Medical Society for Ozone Therapy. The dosage is decisive for the therapy. With the earlier ozone devices, the dosage could not be set or checked, so that the therapist did not know the concentration with which the ozone therapy was carried out. Only modern ozone devices can produce ozone to the microgram and are certified in accordance with the Medical Devices Act . Ozone doses between 20 and 50 µg / cc are recommended for therapy.

For the production it is absolutely necessary to use 100% pure, medical oxygen, because when using atmospheric oxygen, which contains approx. 40% nitrogen, toxic reaction products of the ozone with the nitrogen arise (nitrogen oxides). The previous use of PVC bags is now obsolete, as ozone reacts with the polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which consists of around 55%, and unwanted by-products such as B. phthalates can arise. Only ozone from neutral glass bottles should be used.

Ozone is an irritant gas which, if released (unintentionally), irritates the airways and eyes. Therefore inhalation is not used in therapeutic application. According to Stiftung Warentest , the risk of incidents in the event of improper use is at least 1: 2000. Injecting ozone into a vein or artery can cause serious side effects; If the injection is too rapid, pulmonary embolism or circulatory collapse can occur; at least one death from an embolism has been scientifically described. Stiftung Warentest speaks of several deaths that were dealt with in court. This type of application is therefore now absolutely obsolete and prohibited in Germany.

Infection with blood-borne viruses cannot be ruled out in the event of improper, non-sterile handling, as is the case with other procedures in which patients / therapists come into contact with human body fluids; therefore, use is only recommended by medically trained therapists, taking into account the current hygiene regulations . Cases of hepatitis B virus diseases due to improper use are described.

Possible side effects of treatment are dizziness , nausea, headache, cardiac arrhythmias , cough and intestinal cramps (after rectal use). There is a risk of allergic shock . A more recent study from 2016 with over 11,000 treatments in the form of the autologous blood treatment described above, on the other hand, showed that the treatment is safe to use and formally meets the criteria of evidence-based medicine.

Dentistry

In dentistry, some dentists use ozone to treat tooth decay without drilling and to prevent periodontal disease . In addition to ozone can root canal - disinfection or sterilization of tooth surfaces are used. When treating small defects (initial caries), ozone is applied directly to the affected tooth in order to kill the caries bacteria; no tooth substance is removed. In the case of larger carious defects, on the other hand, it is necessary to remove the carious substance beforehand using a drill or laser. The cavity obtained in this way can then be gassed with ozone in order to eliminate residual bacteria. Then the tooth is remineralized. Treatment with ozone has recently been possible even in hard-to-reach places and under existing fillings . In addition, partially ozonated water is used to treat gingivitis (inflammation of the gums) and periodontitis as well as for antimicrobial mouth rinsing.

The use of ozone in dentistry requires a rethink in diagnosis and therapy. While carious teeth with loss of substance (larger holes) can no longer be treated with ozone, ozone must already be used in the phase of infection of the tooth with caries-relevant germs. Only after the germs in the tooth have been significantly reduced with ozone therapy can fluoride therapy offer greater protection of the tooth against demineralization . Studies meanwhile give promising indications that the painless application of ozone in connection with intensive fluoridation can be used to successfully treat or prevent, especially in anxious children. The cost of ozone treatment for tooth decay is not covered by the statutory health insurance.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ B. Biedunkiewicz: Natural killer cell activity unaffected by ozonated autohemotherapy in patients with end-stage renal disease on maintenance renal replacement therapy. In: Int J Artif Organs. 27 (9), Sep 2004, pp. 766-771.
  2. ^ OS León et al.: Ozone Oxidative Preconditioning: a Protection Against Cellular Damage by Free Radicals. In: Mediators of Inflammation. (1998) 7, pp. 289-294. PMID 9792340
  3. ↑ G. Valacchi: The dual action of ozone on the skin. In: Br J Dermatol . 153 (6), Dec 2005, pp. 1096-1100.
  4. ↑ a b c d e Stiftung Warentest (Ed.): The other medicine. Benefits and risks of gentle healing methods. 2nd Edition. Berlin 1992, p. 231 f.
  5. ↑ D. Marchetti: An unexpected death during oxygen-ozone therapy. In: Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 21 (2), Jun 2000, pp. 144-147.
  6. ^ Stiftung Warentest (Ed.): The other medicine. P. 232.
  7. ↑ Clinical Evaluation and Evidence Classification of the Systemic Ozone Applications, Major Autohemotherapy and Rectal Insufflation, According to the Requirements for Evidence-Based Medicine
  8. ↑ Dental Health Working Group: Ozone, the miracle weapon?
  9. ↑ Medical information caries: Treat without drilling and pain.

literature

  • N. Di Paolo: Extracorporeal blood oxygenation and ozonation: clinical and biological implications of ozone therapy. In: Redox Rep. 10 (3), 2005, pp. 121-130.
  • VA Bocci: Scientific and medical aspects of ozone therapy. State of the art. In: Arch Med Res. 37 (4), May 2006, pp. 425-35.

Web links

Wiktionary: Ozone therapy  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations
  • Renate Viebahn-Hänsler, Olga Sonia León Fernández, Ziad Fahmy: Ozone in Medicine: Clinical Evaluation and Evidence Classification of the Systemic Ozone Applications, Major Autohemotherapy and Rectal Insufflation, According to the Requirements for Evidence-Based Medicine. In: Ozone: Science & Engineering. 38, 2016, p. 322, doi : 10.1080 / 01919512.2016.1191992 .
  • Masaru Sagai, Velio Bocci: Mechanisms of Action Involved in Ozone Therapy: Is healing induced via a mild oxidative stress? In: Medical Gas Research. 1, 2011, p. 29, doi: 10.1186 / 2045-9912-1-29 . PMC 3298518 (free full text)
  • Scientific and Medical Aspects of Ozone Therapy. (PDF file; 227 kB)