Julia Sudylo, RN sold Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) out of her Basking Ridge, New Jersey home for years. She advertised HBOT for all manner of conditions, even those which aren’t known to benefit from HBOT. In 2013, she was disciplined by the New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners for the unauthorized practice of medicine.
Sudylo seemed particularly obsessed with Lyme disease and autism, trying to create a connection between them without any compelling evidence. Her web site linked to vile organizations like the now-defunct Lyme Induced Autism Foundation and stated:
There is growing belief that there is an increase in the incidence of autism among lyme sufferer’s and their children. I call it lyme related autism. If you have a child that has been diagnosed with a learning disorder, ADHD, ASD, PPD please consider having yourself and your child tested for lyme.
If you have a history of lyme as a child with or without symptoms your child may be exposed to the lyme bacterial.
There is no link between autism and Lyme disease. But HBOT is a popular form of quackery for autism and chronic Lyme.
The FDA and Inside Edition have warned the public about cure-all claims made about HBOT. According to the FDA:
HBOT has not, however, been proven to be the kind of universal treatment it has been touted to be on some Internet sites. FDA is concerned that some claims made by treatment centers using HBOT may give consumers a wrong impression that could ultimately endanger their health.
Discipline
In 2013, in response to a complaint, the New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners negotiated a Consent Order with Sudylo in which she would be disciplined.
The Board found:
- Sudylo charged $95-125 per session to treat varied conditions including general wellness, Lyme Disease, Stroke, Traumatic brain injury, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Multiple Sclerosis, Autism, and Sports injuries.
- Sudylo did not have a supervising physician at her house-based facility.
- Sudylo advertised herself as a Certified Hyperbaric Technician even after her registration had expired.
- Sudylo administered HBOT without a valid prescription.
- Sudylo failed to properly maintain patient records, including, but not limited to recording and/or administering patients’ vital signs.
- Provision of such unsupervised treatment, in a non-clinical or hospital setting, constitutes the unlicensed practice of medicine (but a charge of unlicensed practice of medicine was not formally prosecuted due to the Consent Order).
Sudylo was required to stop advertising her home-based HBOT business, cease and desist offering HBOT without complying with various conditions, pay costs of $4,375.60, and pay an aggregate civil penalty of $1250.
Resources
LymeScience: Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: More Lyme quackery
New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners: Julia Sudylo discipline