Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative
Non-pharmacological strategies are recommended as first-line therapy for hip osteoarthritis (OA), yet evidence for balnear rehabilitation remains limited, particularly in Romanian settings. We aimed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of a two-week Techirghiol balneo-physical programme—sapropel...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Romanian Association of Balneology, Editura Balneara
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Balneo and PRM Research Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://bioclima.ro/Balneo813.pdf |
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| author | Sterian Apostol Liliana-Elena Stanciu Corneliu-Dan Blendea Andreea-Dalila Nedelcu Elena Apostol Dimitri Apostol Petru Bordei |
| author_facet | Sterian Apostol Liliana-Elena Stanciu Corneliu-Dan Blendea Andreea-Dalila Nedelcu Elena Apostol Dimitri Apostol Petru Bordei |
| author_sort | Sterian Apostol |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Non-pharmacological strategies are recommended as first-line therapy for hip osteoarthritis (OA), yet evidence for balnear rehabilitation remains limited, particularly in Romanian settings. We aimed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of a two-week Techirghiol balneo-physical programme—sapropelic mud, warm mineral-water immersion, adjunct physical agents and tar-geted kinetotherapy—on pain, function and quality of life in hip OA. In this prospective single-centre cohort, this study included patients who presented with clinical symptoms of hip pain and were subsequently diagnosed with hip osteoarthritis based on radiographic evaluation; 37 met inclusion criteria and completed follow-up (73 % women; mean age ± SD = 64 ± 8 years). Outcomes were recorded at admission, discharge (week 2) and one-month post-therapy: Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and Short-Form-20 (SF-20). Within-group changes were analysed with paired-samples t tests (VAS, SF-20) and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests (WOMAC). Effect sizes were expressed as Hedges g or rank-biserial r. Kinetotherapy effects were explored with Mann-Whitney U tests. Mean VAS decreased by 3.87 points (95 % CI 3.58–4.15; t(36)=27.5; p<0.001; g=0.86), and SF-20 rose by 6.14 points (95 % CI 4.94–7.33; t(36)=-10.4; p<0.001; g=–1.69). Median WOMAC total improved by 12 points (IQR 9–17; Z=-5.30; p<0.001; r=0.87). All gains persisted at one-month follow-up. Patients receiving supervised kinetotherapy (n = 17) achieved greater WOMAC-Activity improvement than those without (U = 243.5; p=0.024; r=0.37). No adverse events or drop-outs occurred. A brief, multimodal Techirghiol programme produced large, clinically relevant reductions in pain and disability and durable quality-of-life gains, supporting its use as a safe, first-line non-pharmacologic option for symptomatic hip OA. Augmenting balneotherapy with structured kinetotherapy further enhances functional recovery and should be routinely incorpo-rated into balnear rehabilitation protocols. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b789293c40414f2899e658de24bdd7a9 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2734-8458 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Romanian Association of Balneology, Editura Balneara |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Balneo and PRM Research Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-b789293c40414f2899e658de24bdd7a92025-08-20T02:40:40ZengRomanian Association of Balneology, Editura BalnearaBalneo and PRM Research Journal2734-84582025-06-0116280810.12680/balneo.2025.813Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternativeSterian Apostol 0Liliana-Elena Stanciu1Corneliu-Dan Blendea 2Andreea-Dalila Nedelcu 3Elena Apostol4Dimitri Apostol 5Petru Bordei 6„Ovidius” University of Constanta, 900470 Constanta, Romania„Ovidius” University of Constanta, 900470 Constanta, Romania; Balneal and Rehabilitation Sanatorium of Techirghiol,, 906100, Techirghiol, Romania;“Titu Maiorescu” University of Bucharest, 031593 Bucharest, Romania„Ovidius” University of Constanta, 900470 Constanta, Romania„Ovidius” University of Constanta, 900470 Constanta, Romania“Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Bucharest, 020021 Bucharest, Romania„Ovidius” University of Constanta, 900470 Constanta, RomaniaNon-pharmacological strategies are recommended as first-line therapy for hip osteoarthritis (OA), yet evidence for balnear rehabilitation remains limited, particularly in Romanian settings. We aimed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of a two-week Techirghiol balneo-physical programme—sapropelic mud, warm mineral-water immersion, adjunct physical agents and tar-geted kinetotherapy—on pain, function and quality of life in hip OA. In this prospective single-centre cohort, this study included patients who presented with clinical symptoms of hip pain and were subsequently diagnosed with hip osteoarthritis based on radiographic evaluation; 37 met inclusion criteria and completed follow-up (73 % women; mean age ± SD = 64 ± 8 years). Outcomes were recorded at admission, discharge (week 2) and one-month post-therapy: Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and Short-Form-20 (SF-20). Within-group changes were analysed with paired-samples t tests (VAS, SF-20) and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests (WOMAC). Effect sizes were expressed as Hedges g or rank-biserial r. Kinetotherapy effects were explored with Mann-Whitney U tests. Mean VAS decreased by 3.87 points (95 % CI 3.58–4.15; t(36)=27.5; p<0.001; g=0.86), and SF-20 rose by 6.14 points (95 % CI 4.94–7.33; t(36)=-10.4; p<0.001; g=–1.69). Median WOMAC total improved by 12 points (IQR 9–17; Z=-5.30; p<0.001; r=0.87). All gains persisted at one-month follow-up. Patients receiving supervised kinetotherapy (n = 17) achieved greater WOMAC-Activity improvement than those without (U = 243.5; p=0.024; r=0.37). No adverse events or drop-outs occurred. A brief, multimodal Techirghiol programme produced large, clinically relevant reductions in pain and disability and durable quality-of-life gains, supporting its use as a safe, first-line non-pharmacologic option for symptomatic hip OA. Augmenting balneotherapy with structured kinetotherapy further enhances functional recovery and should be routinely incorpo-rated into balnear rehabilitation protocols.https://bioclima.ro/Balneo813.pdfhip osteoarthritiscoxarthrosisbalneotherapysapropelic mud therapykinetotherapynon-pharmacological rehabilitationquality of life |
| spellingShingle | Sterian Apostol Liliana-Elena Stanciu Corneliu-Dan Blendea Andreea-Dalila Nedelcu Elena Apostol Dimitri Apostol Petru Bordei Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative Balneo and PRM Research Journal hip osteoarthritis coxarthrosis balneotherapy sapropelic mud therapy kinetotherapy non-pharmacological rehabilitation quality of life |
| title | Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative |
| title_full | Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative |
| title_fullStr | Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative |
| title_short | Rehabilitation treatment of coxo-femoral osteo-arthritis - a usefull alternative |
| title_sort | rehabilitation treatment of coxo femoral osteo arthritis a usefull alternative |
| topic | hip osteoarthritis coxarthrosis balneotherapy sapropelic mud therapy kinetotherapy non-pharmacological rehabilitation quality of life |
| url | https://bioclima.ro/Balneo813.pdf |
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