Ozone Therapy for Covid: A Brief Research Review


By Ronald Steriti, ND, PhD©

Ozone therapy was proposed as a solution to potential emerging crisis in infectious disease management before Covid-19.1 Oxygen-ozone therapy has also been proposed as an integrated medication form for cardiovascular disorders and chronic inflammatory diseases.2,3

The medical therapeutic potential of ozone has been proposed since 1896, when Nikola Tesla built the first ozone generator device used as disinfectant as well as for medical therapy.4,5

Major autohemotherapy (MAH) is a commonly accepted delivery method. An aliquot of blood, 50–200 mL is withdrawn in a glass (preferable) or plastic container. An equal volume of medical-grade ozone gas is added with mixing the two phases and reinfused under gravity. Proper mixing is done by gentle swirling instead of shaking.

This article will describe published research on the use of ozone therapy in Covid-19. Several review articles are available.6,7


Ozone Therapy Plus Conventional Treatment

A study published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice investigates the effectiveness of ozone therapy on the prevalence of mortality in patients receiving Covid-19 treatment.8 The Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey, conducted the study.

Ozone therapy (major autohemotherapy) was applied to 37 patients of fifty-five patients who were being treated with the hospital’s Covid-19 treatment protocol. The ozone protocol consisted of seven sessions (one per day) of intravenous ozone, applied in a volume of 100 mL and a concentration of 30 μg/mL. Only the conventional Covid-19 treatment protocol was applied to 18 patients in the control group. Clinical follow-up was performed until the discharge of the patients from the hospital with successful treatment or until mortality occurred.

Intensive care unit (ICU) hospitalization was required in 6 of the 37 patients who were treated with ozone (16.2%), while 4 of 18 patients in the control group required ICU treatment (22.2%) (P = .713).

Patients receiving ozone therapy appear to have a lower mortality risk (odds ratio: 0.149, 95% confidence interval 0.026-0.863, P = .034).

Ozone therapy along with the conventional medical treatment in patients hospitalized for Covid-19 could reduce mortality.8


Ozone Therapy Covid-19 Pneumonia

A prospective case-control study published in International Immunopharmacology examined the effect of ozone therapy for patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.9 The Policlinica Ibiza Hospital, Spain, conducted the study.

Eighteen patients with COVID-19 infection (laboratory confirmed) severe pneumonia admitted to hospital were assigned to treatment with ozone autohemotherapy or standard treatment.

Patients in the case group received ozonated blood twice daily starting on the day of admission for a median of four days. Each treatment involved administration of 200 mL autologous whole blood enriched with 200 mL of oxygen-ozone mixture with a 40 μg/mL ozone concentration.  The primary outcome was time from hospital admission to clinical improvement. Nine patients (50%) received ozonated autohemotherapy.

Ozonated autohemotherapy was associated with shorter time to clinical improvement (median [interquartile range], 7 days [6-10] vs 28 days [8-31], p = 0.04) and better outcomes at 14-days (88.8% vs 33.3%, p = 0.01).

In risk-adjusted analyses, ozonated autohemotherapy was associated with a shorter mean time to clinical improvement (-11.3 days, p = 0.04, 95% CI -22.25 to -0.42).

Ozonated autohemotherapy was associated with a significantly shorter time to clinical improvement in this prospective case-control study.9
Ozone Autohemotherapy

A study published in the Journal of Medical Virology evaluated the adjuvant use of systemic oxygen-ozone administration in the early control of disease progression in patients with Covid-19 pneumonia.10 The Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, conducted the study.

Twenty-eight patients were randomly divided into ozone-autohemotherapy group (n=14) and control group (n=14). The procedure consisted of a daily double-treatment with systemic oxygen-ozone administration for seven days. All patients were treated with ad interim best available therapy.

The primary outcome was delta in the number of patients requiring orotracheal-intubation despite treatment. Secondary outcome was the difference of mortality between the two groups. Moreover, hematological parameters were compared before and after treatment. No differences in the characteristics between groups were observed at baseline.

One patient for each group needed intubation and was transferred to ITU. No deaths were observed at 7-14 days of follow up.

Thirty-day mortality was 8.3% for ozone group and 10% for controls. Ozone therapy did not significantly influence inflammation markers, hematology profile, and lymphocyte subpopulations of patients treated.

Ozone therapy had an impact on the need for the ventilatory support, although this did not reach statistical significance.

Blood Ozonization

A case-control study published in Internal and Emergency Medicine examined the effect of autohemotherapy with an oxygen/ozone gaseous mixture as adjuvant therapy in hospitalized adult patients with confirmed Covid-19 with mild to moderate pneumonia.11 A single center in Udine University Hospital (Italy) conducted the study.

Thirty (of 60) patients were treated with ozone as adjuvant therapy and 30 controls treated with best available therapy only. In the group treated with ozone autohemotherapy plus best available therapy, patients were younger but with more severe clinical phenotypes.

A decrease of SIMEU clinical phenotypes was observed (2.70 ± 0.67 vs. 2.35 ± 0.88, p = 0.002) in all patients during hospitalization but this clinical improvement was statistically significant only in ozone-treated patients (2.87 ± 0.78 vs. 2.27 ± 0.83, p < 0.001), not the control group (2.53 ± 0.51 vs. 2.43 ± 0.93, p = 0.522). No adverse events were observed associated with the application of O2/O3 gaseous mixture.

Ozone therapy as adjuvant therapy could be useful in mild to moderate pneumonia due to SARS-CoV-2.


Oxygen-Ozone Immunoceutical Therapy

A study published in International Immunopharmacology evaluated the efficacy of a novel approach to treat Covid-19 patients using an oxygen-ozone mixture.12 The University of Verona, Italy, conducted the study.

Fifty hospitalized Covid-19 subjects suffering from acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS), aged more than 60 years, all males and undergoing non-invasive mechanical ventilation in intensive care units (ICUs) received four cycles of oxygen-ozone-immunoceutical therapy.

Following oxygen-ozone treatment, a significant improvement in inflammation and oxygenation indexes occurred rapidly and within the first nine days after the treatment, despite the expected 14-20 days.

A significant reduction of inflammatory and thromboembolic markers (CRP, IL-6, D-dimer) was observed. Furthermore, amelioration in the major respiratory indexes, such as respiratory and gas exchange markers (SatO2%, PaO2/FiO2 ratio), was reported.

Results show that oxygen-ozone treatment would be a promising therapy for Covid-19 patients. It leads patients to a fast recovery from ARDS via the improvement of major respiratory indexes and blood gas parameters, following a relatively short time of dispensed forced ventilation (about one to two weeks).


Conclusion

Ozone therapy may be a valuable adjunct to standard treatments of Covid-19. More studies are needed.


About The Author

Dr. Steriti is a researcher and writer of books and continuing education courses for medical professionals. He is Dr. Wright’s researcher at the Tahoma Clinic. PDF copies of three of his books on Covid are available on his web site. https://naturdoctor.com/ :

  • COVID Research Review – Conventional Medicine
  • COVID Research Review – Alternative Medicine and Natural Therapies
  • Post-Acute COVID Research Review

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