Highlights
- 1Paraffin bath therapy is a noninvasive treatment that widely used for pain control and functional improvement in various hand diseases.
- 2However, there are few large-scale studies of paraffin bath therapy, and there is insufficient evidence of its efficacy.
- 3This meta-analysis showed that paraffin bath therapy alone or combination with other treatments significantly reduced the visual analogue scale score and enhanced grip and pinch strengths.
- 4Paraffin bath therapy exerts positive effects in the treatment of various hand diseases including osteoarthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, spasticity in stroke and post-traumatic stiffness, thereby improving quality of life.
Abstract
Background
Paraffin bath therapy is noninvasive and is widely used in various hand diseases.
Paraffin bath therapy is easy to use, has fewer side effects, and can be applied to
various diseases with different etiologies. However, there are few large-scale studies
of paraffin bath therapy, and there is insufficient evidence of its efficacy.
Purpose
The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of paraffin bath therapy
for pain relief and functional improvement in various hand diseases through a meta-analysis.
Study design
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Methods
We searched for studies using PubMed and Embase. Eligible studies were selected based
on the following criteria: (1) patients with any diseases of the hand; (2) comparison
between paraffin bath therapy and no paraffin bath therapy; and (3) sufficient data
on changes in the visual analog scale (VAS) score, grip strength, pulp-to-pulp pinch
strength, or Austrian Canadian (AUSCAN) Osteoarthritis Hand index before and after
paraffin bath therapy. Forest plots were drawn to visualize the overall effect. Jadad
scale score, I2 statistics, and subgroup analyses were used to assess the risk of bias.
Results
A total of five studies included 153 patients who were treated and 142 who were not
treated with paraffin bath therapy. The VAS were measured in all 295 patients included
in the study, while the AUSCAN index was measured in the 105 patients with osteoarthritis.
Paraffin bath therapy significantly reduced the VAS scores (mean difference [MD],
−1.27; 95% confidence interval [CI] −1.93 to −0.60). In osteoarthritis, paraffin bath
therapy significantly improved grip and pinch strength (MD −2.53; 95% CI 0.71-4.34;
MD 0.77; 95% CI 0.71-0.83) and reduced the VAS and AUSCAN scores (MD −2.61; 95% CI
−3.07 to −2.14; MD −5.02; 95% CI −8.95 to −1.09).
Discussion
Paraffin bath therapy significantly reduced the VAS and AUSCAN scores, and improved
grip and pinch strength in patients with various hand diseases.
Conclusions
Paraffin bath therapy is effective for alleviating pain and improving function in
hand diseases, thereby improving quality of life. However, owing to the small number
of patients included in the study and its heterogeneity, a further large-scale, well-structured
study is needed.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 12, 2023
Accepted:
October 9,
2022
Received in revised form:
August 4,
2022
Received:
June 22,
2021
Publication stage
In Press Corrected ProofFootnotes
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest related to this study.
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
