Singh Meenu, Singh Manvi
Department of Pediatrics, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Sector 12, Chandigarh, India, 160012.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2011 May 11(5):CD001728. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001728.pub4.
Heated, humidified air has long been used by sufferers of the common cold. The theoretical basis is that steam may help congested mucus drain better and heat may destroy the cold virus as it does in vitro.
To assess the effects of inhaling heated water vapour (steam) in the treatment of the common cold by comparing symptoms, viral shedding and nasal resistance.
In this updated review we searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library 2010, Issue 3), which contains the Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group's Specialised Register, MEDLINE (1966 to July Week 1, 2010), EMBASE (1990 to July 2010) and Current Contents (1994 to July 2010).
Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) using heated water vapour in participants with the common cold or participants with experimentally-induced common cold.
We reviewed all retrieved articles and excluded any articles, editorials and abstracts with inadequate outcome descriptions. The studies we included were subjected to a methodological assessment.
Six trials (394 trial participants) were included. Three trials in which patient data could be pooled found benefits of steam for symptom relief for the common cold (odds ratio (OR) 0.31; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.16 to 0.60). However, results on symptom indices were equivocal. No studies demonstrated an exacerbation of clinical symptom scores. One study conducted in the USA demonstrated worsened nasal resistance, while an earlier Israeli study showed improvement. One study examined viral shedding and antibody titres in nasal washings; there was no change in either between treatment and placebo groups. Minor side effects (including discomfort or irritation of the nose) were reported in some studies.
AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Steam inhalation has not shown any consistent benefits in the treatment of the common cold, hence is not recommended in the routine treatment of common cold symptoms until more double-blind, randomized trials with a standardised treatment modality are conducted.
长期以来，普通感冒患者一直使用温热、湿润的空气。其理论依据是，蒸汽可能有助于充血的黏液更好地排出，而热在体外能消灭感冒病毒。
通过比较症状、病毒排出和鼻阻力，评估吸入热水蒸汽（蒸汽）治疗普通感冒的效果。
在本次更新的综述中，我们检索了Cochrane对照试验中心注册库（CENTRAL）（《Cochrane图书馆》2010年第3期），其中包含Cochrane急性呼吸道感染小组的专业注册库、医学期刊数据库（MEDLINE，1966年至2010年7月第1周）、荷兰医学文摘数据库（EMBASE，1990年至2010年7月）和《现刊目次》（1994年至2010年7月）。
对普通感冒患者或实验性诱发普通感冒的参与者使用热水蒸汽的随机对照试验（RCT）。
我们查阅了所有检索到的文章，排除了结果描述不充分的任何文章、社论和摘要。我们纳入的研究进行了方法学评估。
纳入了6项试验（394名试验参与者）。3项可汇总患者数据的试验发现，蒸汽对缓解普通感冒症状有益（优势比（OR）0.31；95%置信区间（CI）0.16至0.60）。然而，症状指数的结果并不明确。没有研究表明临床症状评分会恶化。美国进行的一项研究显示鼻阻力恶化，而以色列早期的一项研究则显示有所改善。一项研究检测了鼻腔冲洗液中的病毒排出和抗体滴度；治疗组和安慰剂组之间两者均无变化。一些研究报告了轻微的副作用（包括鼻子不适或刺激）。
吸入蒸汽在治疗普通感冒方面未显示出任何一致的益处，因此在进行更多采用标准化治疗方式的双盲、随机试验之前，不建议将其用于常规治疗普通感冒症状。
