In 1981, my father was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or "Lou Gehrig’s Disease), a progressive and fatal motor neuron disease. At a fit and unusually active 71years of age, he was concerned about the deterioration of the muscles in his arms and shoulder. The ALS diagnosis, though, carried the dire prognosis of progressive loss of motor control and death within 3 to 5 years. Taking an "I just won’t have this" attitude, my mother immediately sought whatever treatments might help. These included an experimental drug that had to be "smuggled" in from Italy... and HBOT at the hands of one of the true "characters" in the field, Dr. J.R. Maxfield. I, as usual, had been tasked with "checking out" this strange therapy and its application to neurological disorders. Dr. Maxfield furnished much material on the various theoretical workings and "off label" clinical applications of HBOT. Like most people with a mainstream knowledge of HBOT, I was amazed to learn of its apparent efficiency with a myriad of conditions beyond decompression illness and diabetic foot wounds.

Through Dr. J.R. Maxfield, I met Dr. Edward Teller, who shared Dr. Maxfield’s passion for HBOT and his enthusiasm to discuss its many applications to anyone who expressed a genuine interest. As is true of most geniuses, Dr. Teller had an amazing ability to describe complex topics with startling clarity and simplicity. One of the memories I will never forget is a Saturday morning that Dr. Maxfield invited me to bring my son Joel over to meet Dr. Teller. Dr. Maxfield remembered that I had told him Joel, at 14 or 15 then, had a strong aptitude for math. He had passed this on to Dr. Teller, who had suggested he meet Joel. Joel and I arrived as Dr. Teller was getting ready for one of his regular treatments. Dressed in jeans, a motorcycle jacket, and a heavy metal T-shirt (and an attitude to match, I’m afraid, his Saturday morning burdened with a trip to a "doctor’s office") Joel seemed most incompatible with the elderly and formal Hungarian physicist. Not so amazingly to those who are fortunate enough to have known Dr. Teller, they hit it off quite well. As Dr. Maxfield pulled me aside to look at some new research paper on HBOT’s speeding the healing of broken bones, Dr. Teller enlisted Joel’s help in removing his prosthetic foot in preparation for a "dive." All the while the two were discussing algorithms for computer generated prime numbers! Later Joel and I received several invitations from Drs. Maxfield and Teller to accompany them to rocket launches off the Florida coast. I shall always regret that we never took them up on their generous offer.

And my Dad… the progression of his motor neuron disease (no longer "ALS" because, according to the neurologists, "ALS doesn’t remit like this") stopped. Instead of dying in 3 to 5 years from respiratory failure or choking, he lived another 16 years – finally succumbing to heart failure. He continued HBOT with Dr. Maxfield and then my mother and he provided the initial funding to establish a hyperbaric operation at the osteopathic hospital in Fort Worth with a couple of used chambers secured by Dr. Maxfield. Dr. Teller spoke at the dedication ceremony opening the department. The HBOT department at the hospital now sports a huge multi-place chamber and is used for neurological disorders such as myasthenia gravis, multiple sclerosis, and cerebral palsy as well as the approved applications. Do I believe in HBOT for treatment of neurological syndromes? Absolutely! Someday soon, so will the entire healthcare industry.

-Dr. W. Gordon