Health management of patients with COVID-19: is there a room for hydrotherapeutic approaches?

Abstract

With highly variable types of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms in both severity and duration, there is today an important need for early, individualized, and multidisciplinary strategies of rehabilitation. Some patients present persistent affections of the respiratory function, digestive system, cardiovascular function, locomotor system, mental health, sleep, nervous system, immune system, taste, smell, metabolism, inflammation, and skin. In this context, we highlight here that hydrothermal centers should be considered today as medically and economically relevant alternatives to face the urgent need for interventions among COVID-19 patients. We raise the potential benefits of hydrotherapy programs already existing which combine alternative medicine with respiratory care, physical activity, nutritional advice, psychological support, and physiotherapy, in relaxing environments and under medical supervision. Beyond the virtues of thermal waters, many studies reported medical benefits of natural mineral waters through compressing, buoyancy, resistance, temperature changes, hydrostatic pressure, inhalations, or drinking. Thermal institutions might offer individualized follow-up helping to unclog hospitals while ensuring the continuity of health care for the different clinical manifestations of COVID-19 in both post-acute and chronic COVID-19 patients. Our present review underlines the need to further explore the medical effectiveness, clinical and territorial feasibility, and medico-economic impacts of the implementation of post-COVID-19 patient management in hydrotherapeutic establishments.

Systematic Review of COVID-19-Related Physical Activity-Based Rehabilitations: Benefits to Be Confirmed by More Robust Methodological Approaches

“…Therefore, this observation clearly calls for the development of an RP specific to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Indeed, although major defects mainly concern the respiratory system, specific approaches to different body systems should be conducted since many implications can be observed, such as neuromuscular, cardiovascular, digestive, nervous, metabolic, immune, inflammatory, skin, taste, smell, or sleep implications [ 3 , 4 , 78 ].…”

Einfluss von Hydrotherapie auf die Fatigue-Symptomatik – ein narratives Review

“…Diese hat bei vielen einen zum Teil nicht unerheblichen Einfluss auf Aktivität und Teilhabe [32][33][34]. Die hier dargestellten Ergebnisse könnten auch für diese Betroffenen einen Nutzen bringen und sollten in Untersuchungen gezielt überprüft werden [12].…”

“…Nicht nur durch die vielen Patienten, die unter einer Fatigue-Symptomatik nach einer COVID-19-Infektion leiden, sind hydrotherapeutische Optionen wieder in den Blickpunkt gekommen [12].…”

Relying on the French territorial offer of thermal spa therapies to build a care pathway for long COVID-19 patients

“…The need to start respiratory therapy as soon as possible, while hospital resources are over mobilized by acute management [44], and the facilities available to treat patients in the postacute period being limited [17] local thermal spa facilities constitute an appropriate setting for respiratory rehabilitation interventions in post-COVID-19 subjects [45]. If thermal spa therapies can bring benefits on the physiological level (respiratory discomfort, musculoskeletal pains) they also present an interest at the psychological level (anxiety, sleep disorders) by acting on well-being and can be part of a global approach to the treatment of long COVID-19 symptoms.…”