Medical Hydrology and Balneology: Environmental Aspects

Efficency of underwater ultrasound therapy in
hand osteoarthritis
Ungur R (1) , Irsay L (1) , Onac I (1) , Borda M (1) , Ciortea V (1)
(1) University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iuliu Hatieganu, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
irsaylaszlo@gmail.com
Introduction and Objectives
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and a leading cause of
musculoskeletal disability in the middle-aged and older people.The hand is one of
the most commonly affected joints in OA. Hand OA is more common in women
and is significantly associated with functional impairment and reduced independence.
Physiotherapy is one of the recommended nonpharmacological management
options in patients with OA. Heat therapy is applied to obtain analgesia, decrease
muscle spasm, increase collagen extensibility and accelerate metabolic processes.
Two forms of heat therapy are available. Superficial agents such as hot water
heating the skin and subcutaneous tissues, while deep heating agents such as therapeutic
ultrasound may produce temperature elevations of deep tissues.
Application of ultrasound in small joints such as the interphalangeal joints is
difficult even with small transducers, most of the ultrasonic wave being lost in air.
Materials and Methods
We conducted a prospective experimentally cohort analytic study, which included
16 female patients with proximal and distal interphalangeal osteoarthritis of the
hands.
The main objective was to determine the effectiveness of underwater ultrasound
therapy in pain management appreciated with VAS for pain. Secondary objectives
were to determine that underwater ultrasound therapy can influence the functional
scores on hand joints.
Ultrasound in continuous wave, with a frequency of 1MHz, 0.2 W/cm2 intensity
was given underwater with the hands imersed in water for 10 days, 10 minutes /day.
VAS pain, Dreiser\'s functional index, AUSCAN Osteoarthritis Index and Michigan
Hand Outcomes Questionnaire were determined before and after ultrasound therapy.
Results
The data were processed statistically using Wilcoxon test. The results showed a
statistically significant improvement (p 0.05) for all parameters follow.
Conclusions
In conclusion, underwater ultrasound therapy is effective in relieving pain and
functional scores in patients with osteoarthritis of the hands.
Balnea
2012, núm. 6, 434-435
434
ISBN: 978-84-669-1887-0
978-84-669-3482-4