Clinical rheumatology
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Clinical rheumatology · Jun 2015
Randomized Controlled TrialThe effect of balneotherapy on chronic shoulder pain. A randomized, controlled, single-blind follow-up trial. A pilot study.
The effects of balneotherapy on chronic shoulder pain were studied. In this single-blind, randomized, follow-up study involving 46 patients with chronic shoulder pain, one group of patients received physiotherapy--exercise and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation--and the other group received balneotherapy in addition to physiotherapy for 4 weeks on 15 occasions. The following parameters were recorded before treatment (at week 0) and after treatment (at weeks 4, 7, and 13): Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI), the Short Form (36) Health Survey (SF-36) and EuroQuol-5D (EQ-5D) quality of life questionnaires, pain at rest and on movement on the visual analog scale (VAS), and active and passive range of motion. ⋯ Improvement of passive range of motion was not significant. Balneotherapy may have a beneficial effect on the clinical parameters and quality of life of patients with chronic shoulder pain. The number of patients should be increased.