Paul Langan tries the chamber before his therapy starts

A Devon man with a rare medical condition which causes permanent pain is to try using a decompression chamber to relieve his symptoms.

Paul Langan, who is studying astrophysics at Exeter University, has reflex sympathetic dystrophy.

His body is so sensitive to pain that he has to go to hospital if someone accidentally bumps into him or he is caught in a rain shower.

Paul Langan's family believes oxygen treatment could help him and the South West Multiple Sclerosis Centre in Exeter is making its decompression unit available to help.

Damaged nerves

Paul developed the condition after tripping and falling in a street. He landed awkwardly and damaged nerve endings in his neck.

The condition means his brain wrongly tells parts of his body they are experiencing pain.

His right side is sensitive to temperature and pressure changes and he has to be careful about everyday knocks and bumps which might trigger his condition.

Paul said: "'Normal' does not exist in our house. The condition is always at the forefront of everyone's mind.

"We try and push it to the back so it doesn't control our lives - but it does."

Paul's father, Chris Langan, said: "It can be quite a strain. You are living with someone who is in pain constantly.

Paul's condition was triggered when he accidently fell

"A slight brush against them is enough to land them in hospital. And if he goes outside and it's raining or the wind is blowing, he'll collapse in pain."

The conditions means he has to go to hospital and get an anaesthetic when his fingernails need cut.

Paul and his family believe the only thing that might help is regular treatment in a decompression chamber - similar to those used by deep sea divers who have the bends.

The hyperbaric chamber, which is saturated with oxygen, could help Paul's nervous system not react in such a way.

The MS Centre has two chambers at West Grange because the treatment helps reduce the swelling around areas affected by a multiple sclerosis attack.

The centre said: "We imagine it will be an ongoing thing and it is going to take some time for him to see relief.

"But we will be interested to see how it works for him."