The research of the impact of spa therapy on pain and quality of life in patients with chronic mechanical neck pain

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate efficacy of spa therapy including thermal water, mud therapy, and massage, on pain and the quality of life of patients with chronic mechanical neck pain.Material and methods: Seventy patients who applied to our outpatient clinic with chronic mechanical neck pain lasting for 12 weeks were included in the study. The patients were randomized either to spa therapy group (n=35 ) or to exercise therapy group (n=35).Spa therapy group received total body bath with thermal water and mud therapy to cervical region, which were applied at 40 ° C and for 15 minutes duration. Additionally, this group received classic massage to cervical region for 20 minutes duration. The therapies were applied once a day, five times per week and a total of 15 session. Both exercise therapy and spa therapy groups performed home exercise program once a day for 15 days period.All the patients were evaluated before treatment, at the first week after treatment and at the third month after treatment, a total of 3 times. In each control Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), global assessment of the patient ( Patient?s Global Assessment and Doctor?s Global Assessment), Neck Pain Disability Scale (NPDS), Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) were assessed. Independent Samples t-test, Friedman test and Chi-square test were used for statistical analysis.Results: There were 35 (28 female, 7 male) patients in spa group and 35 (30 female, 5 male ) patients in exercise group. Gender distribution was similar in groups. The mean ages of the patients in spa and exercise therapy groups were 43.08 ± 9.76 and 46.45 ± 9.65 years, respectively and the difference was not statistically significant. There were no significant difference between groups in respect to all the parameters at baseline.At the first week and third month after treatment statistically significant improvements were observed in the VAS, Doctor?s and Patient?s Global Assessment, NPDS, NSP values in both groups.When the measurements at first week were compared to baseline, significant improvements were observed in all the parameters assessed in both groups. However, the decreases in VAS and NPDS values at the first week after treatment were significantly more in spa therapy group compared to exercise therapy group.We observed no statistically significant difference in all the parameters between two groups, when the measurements at the third month were compared to baseline.Conclusion: The combination of the spa therapy with the exercise therapy is superior to the exercise therapy alone in decreasing pain and improving functional capacity in the early period after treatment.