IAVCEI 2013 Scientific Assembly - July 20 - 24, Kagoshima, Japan
Forecasting Volcanic Activity - Reading and translating the messages of nature for society

1P2_4F-O15

Room A6

Date/Time: July 21 17:00-17:15

Therapeutic and health promoting effects of rehabilitation with balneotherapy
Shuji Matsumoto
Kagoshima University, Japan
E-mail: shushu@m.kufm.kagoshima-u.ac.jp

Balneotherapy for patients with disabilities is one of the oldest forms of rehabilitative therapy. Balneotherapy
includes several modalities of treatments and wellness programs, such as physiological and pharmacologicaleffects of warm water bathing and aqua-exercise, relaxing and biorhythm adjusting effects of staying in the urban
climates and educational instruction for healthier life style. In order to examine the effects of balneotherapy forpatients with disabilities, our rehabilitation methods in combination with balneotherapy were reviewed. 1) Effects ofwarm water bathing of hemiplegic lower limb on its isokinetic muscle strength were studied in twelve chronic stroke
patients (53.3 +/- 14.2 y.o.). Peak torque of the knee flexions at any velocity increased after warm water bathing.
Change in the maximum power and total work were similar to that of the peak torque. Warm water bathing mightmake it easy to exert their muscle strength at l20 degrees/sec in flexion corresponding to their severity of theirhemiplegia. 2) Nine hemiplegic patients participated in the second study (56.9 +/- 16.6 y.o.). Participants sat in arelaxed position on a chair, and dipped the affected forearms into warm water at 40 degrees C for 15 minutes. After
forearm bathing, the simple test for evaluating hand function score increased significantly, the resistance powerof elbow extension at 90 degrees/min decreased significantly. Forearm bathing appeared to improve function anddecrease spasticity in hemiplegic hands. This treatment might facilitate hand rehabilitation. 3) The aim of third study
is to assess the efficacy of exercise baths on quality of life (QOL). 49 subjects (20 patients with brain disease, 21
patients with orthopedic disease, and 8 patients with other diseases) were first treated by conventional rehabilitation
comprising physical therapy and occupational therapy for 4.2 +/- 1.4 weeks. Exercise baths were then added to therehabilitation program for a further 4.4 +/- 1.2 weeks. QOL was evaluated by alterations in the MOS Short-Form
36-item Health Survey (SF-36). We defined the period from admission to exercise bath start as Treatment I, andthe period from exercise bath start to discharge as Treatment II. On admission, before and after exercise bath,
QOL was evaluated using the SF-36 scores. We found that the increase of all eight subscales of the SF-36 wassmaller in Treatment I period than in Treatment II period. It was concluded that exercise baths are an effective
non-pharmacological treatment that might facilitate rehabilitation programs.
We observed beneficial effects of balneotherapy on controlling the spasticity of hemiparetic limb, in accomplishingrepetitive facilitation exercise that strengthen neural circuits, and on the quality of life in patients with stroke andorthopedic patients. Rehabilitative treatment in associated with both neuro-rehabilitation and traditional spa therapy
will develop and contribute to welfares of the people.

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