Rymaszewska Joanna, Ramsey David, Chładzińska-Kiejna Sylwia
Department of Psychiatry, Wrocław Medical University, Wrocław, Poland.
Arch Immunol Ther Exp (Warsz). 2008 Jan-Feb;56(1):63-8. doi: 10.1007/s00005-008-0006-5. Epub 2008 Feb 5.
Rheumatism has been treated using whole-body cryotherapy (WBCT) since the 1970s. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of WBCT as an experimental, adjunctive method of treating depressive and anxiety disorders.
A control (n=34) and a study group (n=26), both consisting of outpatients 18-65 years old with depressive and anxiety disorders (ICD-10), received standard psychopharmacotherapy. The study group was additionally treated with a series of 15 daily visits to a cryogenic chamber (2-3 min, from -160 degrees C to -110 degrees C). The Hamilton's depression rating scale (HDRS) and Hamilton's anxiety rating scale (HARS) were used as the outcome measures.
After three weeks, a decrease of at least 50% from the baseline HDRS-17 scores in 34.6% of the study group and 2.9% of the control group and a decrease of at least 50% from the baseline HARS score in 46.2% of the study group and in none of the control group were noted.
These findings, despite such limitations as a small sample size, suggest a possible role for WBCT as a short-term adjuvant treatment for mood and anxiety disorders.
自20世纪70年代以来，全身冷冻疗法（WBCT）一直被用于治疗风湿病。本研究的目的是评估WBCT作为治疗抑郁和焦虑症的一种实验性辅助方法的疗效。
一个对照组（n = 34）和一个研究组（n = 26），两组均由年龄在18 - 65岁、患有抑郁和焦虑症（国际疾病分类第10版）的门诊患者组成，接受标准的心理药物治疗。研究组还额外接受了一系列为期15天的低温舱治疗（2 - 3分钟，温度从 - 160摄氏度降至 - 110摄氏度）。汉密尔顿抑郁评定量表（HDRS）和汉密尔顿焦虑评定量表（HARS）用作疗效指标。
三周后，研究组34.6%的患者汉密尔顿抑郁评定量表17项（HDRS - 17）得分较基线至少降低了50%，而对照组这一比例为2.9%；研究组46.2%的患者汉密尔顿焦虑评定量表（HARS）得分较基线至少降低了50%，对照组则无一人达到这一水平。
尽管存在样本量小等局限性，但这些研究结果表明，全身冷冻疗法可能作为情绪和焦虑症的短期辅助治疗方法发挥作用。
