Television host Jay Leno is heading home from the hospital, after being treated in an oxygen chamber for severe burns he sustained in a fire while working in his garage.
The Grossman Burn Center announced on Monday that the comedian, 72, has been released following a 10-day stay at the facility, sharing a photo of Leno smiling with some of the staff who have treated him. Burn marks could clearly be seen on his chin neck, and hand.
Leno was being treated at the facility for over a week after his 1907 steam engine car erupted into flames, causing burns to his upper body and face.
His doctor has previously warned that the once-popular late night host may suffer from permanent scarring as a result, but said in a statement on Monday he is pleased with his progress after the star spent time in an oxygen chamber.
Dr. Peter Grossman added that he is ‘optimistic that he will make a full recovery,’ as he continues to receive follow-up care at the Grossman Outpatient Burn Clinic ‘for burns to his face, chest and hands.’
The burn center also noted: ‘Jay would like to let everyone know how thankful he is for the care he received and is very appreciative of all the well wishes.
‘He is looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with his family and friends, and wishes everyone a wonderful holiday.’
The Grossman Burn Center announced on Monday that comedian Jay Leno, 72, has been released from the facility
It shared a photo of him smiling with some of the medical staff who treated him for the past 10 days
His hand appeared badly burned and scarred following a fiery explosion in his garage
The former late night host was being treated for his burns in an oxygen chamber
Leno was hospitalized on November 12 following the fiery explosion at his garage, where he keeps a number of vintage cars as part of a collection.
George Swift, a mechanic in the comedian’s personal garage, told ET that it was a steam car that sent Leno to the hospital.
‘It was a steam car. This steam was made by gas. It got sprayed, as a gas,’ Swift, a mechanic who works at the garage,’ he said.
‘He called me, and he told me there was a fire and the fire department is coming,’ the employee continued.
The Burbank Fire Department then confirmed they were dispatched to the late night host’s home at around 12.30om that day, and when they arrived they assessed and treated ‘one adult male.’
Leno was then transported to a local emergency room before being transferred to the Grossman Burn Center for further care.
A spokesperson for the medical center told People at the time that Leno ‘is in good humor and is touched by all the inquiries into his condition and well wished.
‘He wants to let everyone know he is doing well and is in “the best burn center in the United States.”
Leno was working on a 1907 steam engine car (pictured) when it erupted into flames on November 12
Leno later issued a statement himself, saying he ‘got some serious burns from a gasoline fire.
‘I am ok,’ the late night host said. ‘Just need a week or two to get back on my feet.’
He also told TMZ that it was his friend, Dave, who saved his life, by jumping on him and smothering the flames.
The host said that he was repairing a clogged fuel line when he got sprayed on his hands and face with gasoline.
Leno was placed in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to aid with his healing
His Dr Peter Grossman described Leno as a ‘kind and engaging patient’
While at the Grossman Burn Center in Los Angeles, Leno was put in an oxygen chamber to help with swelling and prevent bacterial infections.
Dr. Grossman also performed skin grafts on the television star, removing his burnt skin and replacing it with skin from a skin bank.
He also removed unhealthy tissue, noting to People that ‘much of the thickness of the skin was injured.’
Grossman noted that the hyperbolic chamber would help Leno’s recovery and prevent infections.
It is described as oxygen therapy that ‘can accelerate burn wound healing’, according to the Grossman Burn Center.
‘It helps decrease swelling, it helps increase blood flow with good oxygenation and it helps decrease bacteria,’ he said before describing Leno as a ‘kind and engaging patient.’
The TV star even handed out cookies to children being treated at the Southern California hospital last week, the doctor said.
Leno (pictured in a post from his Instagram) said in a statement: ‘I got some serious burns from a gasoline fire. I am ok. Just need a week or two to get back on my feet’
The former talk show host enjoys showing off his extensive collection of vehicles including this pair of Buick Roadsters which were his first cars when he moved to LA
Leno has previously shared details on his extensive collection of Barrons.com, including how he acquired the lot of old-school cars.
The steam cars, which he had said are ‘reliable and dependable,’ require a boiler to heat water to steam which then is used to drive a piston that turns the vehicle’s wheels.
In 2021, the ‘Tonight Show’ veteran was actually stopped in his 1906 Stanley Steamer for speeding on Interstate 405 in California.
Leno’s steam collection includes ‘cars, stationary engines, and even an enormous Advance steam tractor,’ according to the 2021 story published by Barrons.
Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker (right) posted a photo with Dr. Grossman in 2013
But he is certainly not Grossman’s first famous patient.
In 2013, rocker Travis Barker shared a photo with Dr. Grossman to his Facebook thanking the medical professional for his help in recovering from severe injuries, presumably sustained in his 2008 plane crash.
‘Went by Grossman Burn Center and visited Peter H. Grossman this morning. I had about 26 surgeries during the time I was at his burn center and 65% of my body was burnt,’ Barker wrote.
‘This dude saved my life along with his team. I owe him a lot,’ the Blink 182 drummer said.
WHAT IS A HYPERBARIC CHAMBER AND HOW IS IT USED?
A hyperbaric chamber is a highly-pressurized room or tube where a patient is given pure oxygen to breathe.
The air pressure in these chambers is three times higher than normal pressure outside.
Lungs operate on gas exchange, which happens more or less efficiently at different pressures.
At this higher air pressure, the lungs are able to take in more oxygen than under normal conditions.
All the body’s tissues require oxygen to live and stay healthy, so in a hyperbaric chamber the lungs take in more oxygen which is then carried throughout the body to restore tissues that may be struggling or infected.
Oxygen also help to reduce inflammation and encourage new blood vessels to grow.
WHAT ARE HYPERBARIC CHAMBERS USED TO TREAT?
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a proven treatment for decompression sickness, a condition that some people develop after SCUBA diving, wherein the high pressure of being deep under water causes nitrogen to form in their blood vessels.
This typically causes muscle and joint aches and fatigue, but in rare cases can prove fatal. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy reverses the process that allows the dangerous nitrogen bubbles to form.
According to the Mayo Clinic, doctors may also recommend hyperbaric oxygen therapy for:
- Anemia, severe
- Brain abscess
- Bubbles of air in your blood vessels (arterial gas embolism)
- Burn
- Decompression sickness
- Carbon monoxide poisoning
- Crushing injury
- Deafness, sudden
- Gangrene
- Infection of skin or bone that causes tissue death
- Non-healing wounds, such as a diabetic foot ulcer
- Radiation injury
- Skin graft or skin flap at risk of tissue death
- Vision loss, sudden and painless
Although claims have been made that the therapy helps a whole hosts of other medical issues, there is only scientific evidence to support the above uses.
There isn’t significant reason to believe it treats conditions like fibromyalgia, depression or chronic fatigue syndrome.
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