In the treatment of cancer, heat therapy or hyperthermia therapy is used to enhance the action of chemotherapy and radiation on shrinking tumors. In cases of ankylosing spondylitis, hyperthermia therapy or hyperthermic treatment is sometimes used for pain relief and muscle relaxation. It involves the direct application of thermal energy or heat to all or part of your body.
Doctors continue to explore the benefits of this treatment method for various rheumatic diseases. While studying the effects of hyperthermia on ankylosing spondylitis, it was found that systemic hyperthermic treatment is effective below 41°C.
Hyperthermia Therapy for Pain Relief
Also called mild systemic hyperthermia, the goal of this therapy is to stimulate your immune system to release certain chemicals in your body that help to improve your symptoms. Hyperthermia, when used for several applications, has a pain-relieving effect on the body while reducing the level of skeletal muscle and tendon activity. It has also been noted that hyperthermic therapy leads to increased production of endorphins. These are chemicals responsible for making you feel less pain, more pleasure, and more relaxation.
When your doctor decides to treat you with systemic hyperthermia treatment, they’ll essentially be giving you an artificial fever. In contrast, topical or regional hyperthermic treatment involves the selective heating of a specific part of your body. Systemic hyperthermia is very effective against the symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis. It particularly helps improve mobility when combined with low-dose radon therapy.
How Systemic Hyperthermia Is Treated
To raise the temperature of your whole body, your doctor will introduce energy into your body and limit the amount that’s lost. Usually, the goal is to increase your whole body temperature moderately to about 38.7 to 39 °C over a period of 1 hour. Your doctor may also achieve this by exposing you to increased environmental temperature.
