Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial

Abstract Background Despite advances in the treatment of depression, one-third of depressed patients fail to respond to conventional antidepressant medication. There is a need for more effective treatments with fewer side effects. The primary aim of this study was to determine whether hyperthermic b...

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Main Authors: Johannes Naumann, Julian Grebe, Sonja Kaifel, Tomas Weinert, Catharina Sadaghiani, Roman Huber
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2017-03-01
Series:BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Subjects:
RCT
Online Access:http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12906-017-1676-5
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spelling doaj-ed05410fa6ad45bdba075d7a60f6e2132020-11-25T03:14:11ZengBMCBMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine1472-68822017-03-011711910.1186/s12906-017-1676-5Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trialJohannes Naumann0Julian Grebe1Sonja Kaifel2Tomas Weinert3Catharina Sadaghiani4Roman Huber5Interdisciplinary Center for Treatment and Research in Balneology, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgCenter for Complementary Medicine, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgCenter for Complementary Medicine, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgCenter for Complementary Medicine, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgInterdisciplinary Center for Treatment and Research in Balneology, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgCenter for Complementary Medicine, Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and Hospital Infection Control, Medical Faculty, Medical Center University of FreiburgAbstract Background Despite advances in the treatment of depression, one-third of depressed patients fail to respond to conventional antidepressant medication. There is a need for more effective treatments with fewer side effects. The primary aim of this study was to determine whether hyperthermic baths reduce depressive symptoms in adults with depressive disorder. Methods Randomized, two-arm placebo-controlled, 8-week pilot trial. Medically stable outpatients with confirmed depressive disorder (ICD-10: F32/F33) who were moderately depressed as determined by the 17-item Hamilton Scale for Depression (HAM-D) score ≥18 were randomly assigned to 2 hyperthermic baths (40 °C) per week for 4 weeks or a sham intervention with green light and follow-up after 4 weeks. Main outcome measure was the change in HAM-Dtotal score from baseline (T0) to the 2-week time point (T1). Results A total of 36 patients were randomized (hyperthermic baths, n = 17; sham condition, n = 19). The intention-to-treat analysis showed a significant (P = .037) difference in the change in HAM-Dtotal score with 3.14 points after 4 interventions (T1) in favour of the hyperthermic bath group compared to the placebo group. Conclusions This pilot study suggests that hyperthermic baths do have generalized efficacy in depressed patients. Trial registration DRKS00004803 at drks-neu.uniklinik-freiburg.de, German Clinical Trials Register (registration date 2016-02-02), retrospectively registered.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12906-017-1676-5DepressionHyperthermic bathsHeart rate variabilityRCT
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Johannes Naumann
Julian Grebe
Sonja Kaifel
Tomas Weinert
Catharina Sadaghiani
Roman Huber
spellingShingle Johannes Naumann
Julian Grebe
Sonja Kaifel
Tomas Weinert
Catharina Sadaghiani
Roman Huber
Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Depression
Hyperthermic baths
Heart rate variability
RCT
author_facet Johannes Naumann
Julian Grebe
Sonja Kaifel
Tomas Weinert
Catharina Sadaghiani
Roman Huber
author_sort Johannes Naumann
title Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
title_short Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
title_full Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
title_fullStr Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
title_full_unstemmed Effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
title_sort effects of hyperthermic baths on depression, sleep and heart rate variability in patients with depressive disorder: a randomized clinical pilot trial
publisher BMC
series BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
issn 1472-6882
publishDate 2017-03-01
description Abstract Background Despite advances in the treatment of depression, one-third of depressed patients fail to respond to conventional antidepressant medication. There is a need for more effective treatments with fewer side effects. The primary aim of this study was to determine whether hyperthermic baths reduce depressive symptoms in adults with depressive disorder. Methods Randomized, two-arm placebo-controlled, 8-week pilot trial. Medically stable outpatients with confirmed depressive disorder (ICD-10: F32/F33) who were moderately depressed as determined by the 17-item Hamilton Scale for Depression (HAM-D) score ≥18 were randomly assigned to 2 hyperthermic baths (40 °C) per week for 4 weeks or a sham intervention with green light and follow-up after 4 weeks. Main outcome measure was the change in HAM-Dtotal score from baseline (T0) to the 2-week time point (T1). Results A total of 36 patients were randomized (hyperthermic baths, n = 17; sham condition, n = 19). The intention-to-treat analysis showed a significant (P = .037) difference in the change in HAM-Dtotal score with 3.14 points after 4 interventions (T1) in favour of the hyperthermic bath group compared to the placebo group. Conclusions This pilot study suggests that hyperthermic baths do have generalized efficacy in depressed patients. Trial registration DRKS00004803 at drks-neu.uniklinik-freiburg.de, German Clinical Trials Register (registration date 2016-02-02), retrospectively registered.
topic Depression
Hyperthermic baths
Heart rate variability
RCT
url http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12906-017-1676-5
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