Mud therapy and rehabilitation - scientific relevance in the last six years (2015 – 2020) Systematic literature review and meta-analysis based on the PRISMA paradigm

Abstract

Background. Balneotherapy is a stimulation - adaptation treatment method applied in the forms of bathing, drinking, and inhalation cures performed with natural therapeutic factors, a method which is acting in three main ways: thermally, mechanically, and chemically. Mud or peloids are natural therapeutic factors formed by natural processes under the influence of biological and geological phenomena, which in a finely dissolved state and mixed with water (mud) are used in medical practice in the form of baths or local procedures. Objective. This systematic review aims to rigorously select related articles and identify within their content, the main possible uses of therapeutic mud and physiological mechanisms, to see the main region of scientific interest for pelotherapy, and to discuss the value of mud therapy in rehabilitation medicine. Methods. The working method is based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. We searched for open-access articles published in English, between January 2015 and December 2020, from the following databases: Cochrane, Elsevier, NCBI/PubMed, NCBI/PMC, PEDro, and ISI Web of Knowledge/Science (the latter was also used to identify ISI indexed articles). The contextually searched syntax used was ”Pelotherapy/Peloidotherapy/Mud-therapy/ /Fango-therapy AND Rehabilitation”. The selected articles were analyzed in detail regarding pathologies addressed by mud therapy and country scientific relevance for this therapeutic method. The meta-analysis proceeded was designated to estimate the prevalence of various pathologies in the use of mud therapy. Results. Our search identified, first, 394 articles. Based on the successive filtering stages and, respectively, on the classification criteria of the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro), we finally identified/retained and analyzed 68 articles. Although, in principle, a rigorous method – and we have followed the PRISMA type paradigm – there still might be some missing works of our related article selection. On the other hand, to augment/ consolidate our documentation base, we have used also 40 papers freely found in the literature, and even – aiming, too, at an as exhaustive knowledge underpinning as possible – derogatively, we have also considered some articles which, probably being very new, couldn't yet have reached the PEDro threshold score we have settled. Conclusions. This paper overviews the current state-of-the-art knowledge in the approach of peloidotherapy in rehabilitation, with a focal point on the therapeutic properties of peloids. Keywords: mud-therapy, pelotherapy, peloidotherapy, fango therapy, rehabilitation, balneotherapy, natural therapeutic factors,

Recent Advances in Molecular Research on Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) Role in Diabetes Mellitus (DM)—A Systematic Review

“…H 2 S is, on the one hand, a therapeutic natural gas [ 17 ] that is found in mofettic joints with carbon dioxide [ 123 ], in sulfurous waters [ 124 ], with appraised medical effects in balneotherapy [ 4 ], and, on the other hand, an endogenous gaseous signal substance in the organisms. Therefore, experimental animals can be exposed to an H 2 S-rich environment to observe this gas’s physiological effects or toxicity.…”

“…Severe and more frequently associated complications of DM may primarily involve the nervous system [ 4 ], kidneys [ 5 ], and/or eyes [ 6 ] due to damage of the microcirculation [ 7 ], respectively; and the cardiovascular systems [ 8 ], due to macroangiopathy [ 9 ]. Cardiomyopathy is responsible for more than 50% of deaths in diabetic patients [ 10 ].…”

Topical Reappraisal of Molecular Pharmacological Approaches to Endothelial Dysfunction in Diabetes Mellitus Angiopathy

“…One of the treatment modalities presented in the previous section is also H 2 S present, including in sulfurous waters and therapeutic sapropelic mud used in balneotherapy. Regarding this therapeutic strategy, we must discuss that usually, hydrotherapy is contraindicated for diabetes and endothelial dysfunction due to the vascular changes involved in such a treatment modality, which is also connected with water temperature [ 74 ].…”

Microbial Composition Dynamics in Peloids Used for Spa Procedures in Lithuania: Pilot Study

“…Healing mud, also known as therapeutic mud or peloid, is a natural substance composed of minerals, organic matter, and water. The International Society of Medical Hydrology defines peloids as “substancSes formed under the geological influence of natural conditions that are mixed with water and used in medical practice in the form of baths or local procedures” [ 1 ]. The recent definition proposed by [ 2 ] defines peloid as “a maturated mud or muddy dispersion with healing and/or cosmetic properties, composed of a complex mixture of fine-grained natural materials of geologic and/or biologic origins, mineral water or seawater, and commonly organic compounds from biological metabolic activity”.…”