The Effectiveness of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy on Older Patients With Medication-Related Osteonecrosis of the Jaws: A Case Series

Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaws (MRONJ) has emerged as one of the major adverse effects of antiresorptive agents in the treatment of patients with cancer and osteoporosis. MRONJ presents as a chronic inflammation of the maxillary and/or mandibular bones accompanied by necrotic bone exposure and intra-/extraoral fistula. Given the increasing number of patients with MRONJ, surgical treatment is highlighted to be significantly beneficial for those patients. However, extensive surgical treatment generally induces physiological and psychological burden on patients with MRONJ. Specifically, older patients with advanced MRONJ require further concerns about their systemic conditions. Thus, oral surgeons are obliged to consider their conditions when determining the indications for extensive surgical treatment. Recently, our department has established a novel therapeutic strategy based on hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy for patients with advanced MRONJ. In this study, we report cases of three older patients with MRONJ who received the combination of conventional treatment and HBO therapy, which resulted in successful management and the avoidance of extensive surgical treatment.