Abstract

Background. Extremely low temperatures, due to physiologically beneficial body reactions, are used as a form of treatment, combined with kinesitherapy in many disorders and dysfunctions, connected with painful ailments. The effects of cryotherapy have been so far investigated using various methods including the thermal one. The objective of the paper was to analyze the temperature layout in various parts of the body and temperature changes under the influence of systemic cryotherapy among patients with spinal pain. The objective of the undertaken observation was also to compare temperature variability in an investigated group of healthy people. Material and methods. The research was conducted on 33 people, divided into two groups. The first group consisted of patients with spine ailments of various aetiology (degenerative changes, discopathy) at the age of 54 years on average. The second group consisted of healthy people at the age of 33 years on average. All of them underwent whole-body cryostimulation treatment in Cryotherapy Laboratory at the University of Physical Education in Wroclaw. The temperature of the whole body was recorded in all participants by a thermal video camera, type Thermo Vision A2OM before, soon after and 40 minutes after cryostimulation. Thermograms illustrated thermal maps of 29 selected parts of the body. Results and Conclusions. Thermal examinations demonstrated significant temperature changes during three successive examinations with great diversity depending on a part of the body. The differences in temperature changes in parts morbidly affected became apparent only after cryostimulation. Systemic cryotherapy caused significant pain relief in patients suffering from such painful spine ailments.

Słowa kluczowe

thermal examinations, systemic cryotherapy, spine disorders