Lunedì 14 Giugno 2010
Treatments and prevention for children with spa water
The best results can be obtained from spa treatments precisely in childhood, for illnesses like rhinogenous deafness, rhinitis, sinusitis, pharyngolaryngitis, chronic bronchitis, simple or accompanied by obstructive components, and dermatological ailments like atopic dermatitis. When attending schools or nurseries, children, with their immune systems not yet fully developed, are often affected by recurrent infections that can at times be very difficult for families to cope with. It is of great importance for prevention, and in particular for complaints of the respiratory system in overall terms, to be carried out at spa centres using spa water, a natural means of treatment. The task of primary prevention, to avoid illnesses being contracted even at an older age, is currently assigned to parents, as the Italian national health service caters for treatment needs by providing no more than one cycle of spa sessions per year. It must be added that in this way the subsequent worsening and repetition of certain conditions can be avoided, achieving what can be termed “secondary prevention”. For treatments, it is the family doctor and paediatrician that makes requests for spa treatments to be provided by the health service, indicating a specific diagnosis from among those covered (for example, a diagnosis of “chronic bronchitis” would qualify for authorization for a cycle of “inhalation treatments” or “treatments for rhinogenous deafness). Such a request is sufficient to be able to visit the chosen spa centre for an initial examination by the spa’s doctors and the assignment of a treatment course. For the type of water to be used, just to give an example, sulphur waters are preferred for hypersecretory or catarrhal illnesses, while bromo-iodine-salt waters are indicated for more predominantly inflammatory ailments. Excellent results for atopic dermatitis have been obtained not only with sulphur waters but also using waters with a low mineral content. One of the scientifically demonstrated actions is an increase in secreted immunoglobulins, which constitute the first barrier on mucous membranes against infections. No spa treatment can be applied however in acute phases of the illness, meaning that young patients must be in good health or in a phase of recovery from a chronic illness from which thy usually suffer. Inhalation cures also applied as a means of prevention must involve the entire respiratory system, as the pathology to which a child tends to be naturally subject also involves this entire system. Treatments for rhinogenous deafness are of fundamental importance, this being a form of hearing loss caused by the obstruction by secreted catarrh of the duct linking the nose and pharynx to the middle ear, the function of which is to compensate pressure inside the ear, making it the same as the surrounding external atmospheric pressure. Interesting results have also been achieved with balneotherapy, involving simply bathing in water, first and foremost for atopic dermatitis, especially in the first years of life. Two treatment cycles per year can also be beneficial, to be taken preferably in late spring and in August or September, before starting back at school.
Dr Stefano Berti
Specialist in Internal Medicine
Specialist in Medical Hydrolog
