A significant effect on depressive symptoms was not found .
The improvements for pain could be maintained at follow-up with smaller effects .
Introduction In the present systematic review and meta- analysis , we assessed the effectiveness of different forms of balneotherapy ( BT ) and hydrotherapy ( HT ) in the management of fibromyalgia syndrome ( FMS ) .
Effects of thermal therapy combining sauna therapy and underwater exercise in patients with fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia syndrome ( FMS ) is a chronic disorder that is characterized by widespread pain with localized tenderness . We aim ed to investigate whether thermal therapy combining sauna therapy and underwater exercise improved pain , symptoms , and quality of life ( QOL ) in FMS patients . Forty-four female FMS patients who fulfilled the American College of Rheumatology ( ACR ) criteria received 12-week thermal therapy program comprising sauna therapy once daily for 3 days/week and underwater exercise once daily for 2 days/week . Pain , symptoms , and QOL were assessed using a pain visual analog scale ( VAS ) , a fibromyalgia impact question naire ( FIQ ) , and a short form 36-item question naire ( SF-36 ) , respectively . All of the patients reported significant reductions in pain and symptoms of 31 - 77 % after the 12-week thermal therapy program , which remained relatively stable ( 28 - 68 % ) during the 6-month follow-up period ( that is , the thermal therapy program improved both the short-term and the long-term VAS and FIQ scores ) . Improvements were also observed in the SF-36 score .  Thermal therapy combining sauna therapy and underwater exercise improved the QOL as well as the pain and symptoms of FMS patients
A significant effect on depressive symptoms was not found .
The improvements for pain could be maintained at follow-up with smaller effects .
Introduction In the present systematic review and meta- analysis , we assessed the effectiveness of different forms of balneotherapy ( BT ) and hydrotherapy ( HT ) in the management of fibromyalgia syndrome ( FMS ) .