PAIN is among the main reasons individuals with rheumatoid arthritis seek medical care. The severe pain, which mostly occurs in the hands and/or feet, negatively affects their ability to perform daily activities because of many problems, such as fatigue, functional limitation, depression and sleep disorders.
Even as medications are available to manage the disease and symptoms associated with rheumatoid arthritis, there is a clear need for alternative management options that can help people cope with both the disease and the side effects of treatment.
Now, in a new study, researchers suggested that something as simple as soaking hands and feet in warm water (40–43°C), particularly warm saltwater, can significantly ease some of the most debilitating symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), offering patients a safe and affordable way to improve daily life.
In Turkey, researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial involving 54 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. They were divided into three groups: the warm saltwater bath group (18 patients), the warm water bath group (18 patients), and the control group receiving routine care only (18 patients).
Participants in the intervention groups soaked their hands and feet in warm water or warm saltwater three times a week for six weeks, typically before bedtime.
Researchers, in the study published in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, assessed pain, fatigue, sleep quality, disease activity, and functional capacity at the start and end of the study using internationally recognized measurement tools.
They also focused on interventions that nurses could teach patients to perform independently at home.
The results showed clear benefits for patients who used warm water or warm saltwater baths. Compared with the control group, both warm water and warm saltwater baths led to significant improvements in pain, fatigue, and sleep quality.
Notably, the greatest pain relief was observed in the warm saltwater group, suggesting that the added salt content helped reduce swelling in the joints and enhanced pain relief.
While both interventions reduced fatigue, warm water baths produced the greatest improvement, including better fatigue-related quality of life, possibly because they improved circulation and promoted deep relaxation.
In addition, patients in both intervention groups reported better sleep, an important finding given the strong link between poor sleep, pain, and fatigue in RA. The warming effect on the hands and feet may have helped the body relax and fall asleep more easily.
More, only patients using warm saltwater baths showed a significant improvement in their ability to perform daily tasks such as dressing, gripping objects, and moving their hands and feet independently. This improvement may be linked to salt’s ability to reduce joint swelling and inflammation more effectively than water alone.
Basically, the primary goals of RA treatment are to achieve remission, suppress inflammation, slow joint destruction, manage pain, and maintain functional independence in daily activities.
The researchers also reported that nurses play an important role in educating patients about symptom management, indicating how nurse-led education can empower patients to perform these baths on their own to better manage symptoms and improve quality of life.
Moreover, researchers in India found Epsom salt baths demonstrated significant pain reduction in the Epsom hot water group compared to plain water, along with notable enhancement in functional performance.
In the International Journal of Health Sciences and Research, the researchers had compared the effectiveness of Epsom salt with hot water versus plain water on pain and functional performance in individuals with arthritis.
In many communities, the elderly commonly use remedies like hot water bags, massages, and wet cloths with Epsom salt for knee pain. The Epsom salt, when mixed (200 mg) in hot water, is applied topically to the painful joint.
Previously, researchers also found a foot bath with warm saltwater effective in reducing pain in patients with painful diabetic neuropathy; hand massage with warm hand baths had a significant effect on sleep quality, comfort, and relaxation in older women with sleep disorders and fatigue-related quality of life in cancer patients.
In a randomized controlled trial, warm water baths before bedtime in patients with knee osteoarthritis had better results in terms of pain and functionality, including knee flexor and extensor strength and knee extensor endurance.
In the European Journal of Oncology Nursing, researchers described how a warm saltwater foot bath is a safe approach to help cope with chemotherapy-related fatigue and enhance the fatigue-related quality of life of cancer patients.
Moreover, researchers reported in the Pain Management Nursing declared aromatherapy massage effective in improving sleep quality in rheumatoid arthritis patients. The trial enrolled 102 patients with rheumatoid arthritis to investigate the effects of aromatherapy on pain and sleep quality.
Compared with the control group, the intervention group showed significant improvement in the sleep quality scores in the first weeks after aromatherapy massage.
The procedure is simple and easy to perform by the patients themselves at home; thus, it could be implemented as a complementary therapy for patients with RA. However, practitioners must consider the pros and cons of aromatherapy massage and tailor the interventions to the needs of patients with RA.
Recent studies emphasize that complementary and integrative methods (CIM), such as exercise, joint protection, hand-foot care, and patient education, can help patients improve their RA-related symptom management and health outcomes.
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