Wound treatment system and method of use

1. A wound treatment method for treating a wounded limb, comprising:

cleaning the wounded limb;

placing the limb into a vessel comprising a chamber lined with a removable and substantially gas impermeable liner, the chamber being portable and formed of a substantially rigid material;

placing a cuff around the wounded limb to substantially form a seal with an opening of the chamber thereby forming a substantially gas impermeable treatment zone around a portion of the limb distal the cuff; and

introducing a mist of water and an antibacterial solution, into the treatment zone; and

introducing O 2 into the treatment zone.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the antibacterial solution comprises ionic silver, hydrogen peroxide, bacitracin, betadine, or isopropyl alcohol.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the antibacterial agent comprises an adiabatically humidified hydrogen peroxide/silver solution.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising monitoring the patient's blood oxygen level using an oximeter.

5. The method of claim 4 , further comprising discontinuing treatment if the patient's blood oxygen level reaches a predetermined level.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the steps of introducing a mist of water and an antibacterial solution into the treatment zone and introducing O 2 into the treatment zone occur simultaneously.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the steps of introducing a mist of water and an antibacterial solution into the treatment zone and introducing O 2 into the treatment zone occur sequentially.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein, following the step of introducing a mist of water and an antibacterial solution into the treatment zone and the step of introducing O 2 into the treatment zone, the introducing steps are repeated.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein each step of introducing O 2 into the treatment zone lasts for between about one minute and about 15 minutes.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein each step of introducing O 2 into the treatment zone lasts for between about 5 minutes.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the step of introducing a mist of water and an antibacterial solution into the treatment zone and the step of introducing O 2 into the treatment zone are repeated 4 times lasting approximately 80 minutes.

12. A wound treatment apparatus, comprising:

a treatment vessel having a treatment chamber and one or more openings to the treatment chamber that are each sized to receive a human limb;

a removable and substantially gas impermeable liner that lines the chamber of the vessel and is adapted to form a treatment zone around the human limb; and

a mixture tank that holds a humidifying agent and O 2 , the mixture tank in fluid communication with the chamber of the vessel.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the lining comprises a sterile plastic material.

14. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising:

an access port in the chamber for receiving water; and

a speaker attached to the vessel; the speaker

configured to deliver low frequency sound waves to the chamber when water is introduced into the chamber.

15. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a hose fluidly connecting the mixture tank with the chamber.

16. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a pump configured to pump water out of the chamber.

17. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a humidifier in fluid communication with the mixture tank; and a hose fluidly connecting the mixture tank to an inlet port in the vessel.

18. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a second inlet port in fluid communication with the vessel.

19. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a pressure release valve on the liner fluidly connecting the treatment zone to the chamber.

20. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a removable lid positioned over the opening of the chamber.

21. The apparatus of claim 12 further comprising a cuff, the cuff removably coupled to the opening of the vessel and sized to sealingly engage a human limb when the limb is inserted through the opening.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the cuff comprises an open cell material configured to naturally leak fluid, thereby forming a baffle for the treatment zone.

23. The apparatus of claim 22 , wherein the cuff is configured to gradually leak fluid to prevent a sudden loss of pressure in the treatment zone.

24. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the cuff comprises a material that acts as a filter for pathogenic material.

25. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a temperature sensor in fluid communication with the treatment zone.

26. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a humidity sensor in fluid communication with the treatment zone.

27. The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a pressure sensor in fluid communication with the treatment zone.

28. A wound treatment system, comprising:

a vessel sized to receive a human limb, the vessel comprising a chamber with at least one opening;

a removable and substantially gas impermeable liner that lines the chamber of the vessel and forms a treatment zone;

a humidifier configured to humidify a solution of water and antibacterial agent, the humidifier in fluid communication with the treatment zone;

an O 2 source in fluid communication with the treatment zone; and

a control panel.

29. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the humidifier comprises an adiabatic humidifier.

30. The wound treatment system of claim 29 , wherein the adiabatic humidifier is configured to use ultrasonic energy to form a mist from the solution of water and antibacterial agent.

31. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the control panel comprises:

a humidifier control configured to control the operation of the humidifier; and

a master power switch.

32. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a source of fluid, the source in fluid communication with the chamber.

33. The wound treatment system of claim 32 , further comprising a pump configured to pump fluid out of the chamber.

34. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the control panel comprises a manual control switch configured to permit manual operation of the system.

35. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the control panel comprises an auto control switch configured to permit automatic operation of the system according to a predetermined regimen.

36. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the auto control switch comprises a plurality of auto settings corresponding to a plurality of predetermined regimens.

37. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a foam cuff adapted to substantially form a seal between the human limb and the opening of the chamber.

38. The wound treatment system of claim 37 , wherein the foam cuff comprises an open cell material configured to slowly leak fluid.

39. The wound treatment system of claim 37 , wherein the foam cuff comprises a material configured to act as a filter for pathogenic material.

40. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising an oximeter in electrical communication with control circuitry integrated with the control panel.

41. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a pressure sensor in communication with the treatment zone.

42. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a humidity sensor in communication with the treatment zone.

43. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a temperature sensor in communication with the treatment zone.

44. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , wherein the O 2 source comprises an O 2 tank or an O 2 concentrator.

45. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a wireless transmitter adapted to transmit data.

46. The wound treatment system of claim 28 , further comprising a barcode data reader.