Is dry heat treatment (fluidotherapy) effective in improving hand function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis? A randomized controlled trial

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of dry heat treatment (fluidotherapy) in improving hand function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Design: Prospective randomized controlled trial. Setting: Departments of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Rheumatology in a university hospital. Subjects: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Interventions: All patients were randomly divided into two groups. Group 1 underwent dry heat treatment (fluidotherapy) and Group 2 was a control group. Patients in both groups participated in a joint protection and exercise program. Main measures: Primary outcome measures were Health Assessment Questionnaire and Duruoz Hand Index. Secondary outcome measures were pain and stiffness, Grip Ability Test, Disease Activity Score-28, and grip strength. These assessments were performed at the hospital at baseline, week 3, and week 12. Results: A total of 93 participants were allocated to Group 1 (n = 47) and Group 2 (n = 46). The mean age of these groups was 54.19 ± 11.15 years and 53.00 ± 10.15 years, respectively (P = 0.592). At baseline, there were no significant differences between the groups in any parameter except significantly poorer Health Assessment Questionnaire score in Group 1 (P = 0.007). At week 3, there were no significant differences between the groups in any of the parameters (P > 0.005). At week 12, Duruoz Hand Index scores were significantly better in Group 2 (P = 0.039). Conclusion: Dry heat treatment (fluidotherapy) was not effective in improving hand function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Moreover, no positive effect on any other clinical parameters was observed.