ArticleThe South African journal of physiotherapy2018
The effects of warm water immersion on blood pressure, heart rate and heart rate variability in people with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Article in The South African journal of physiotherapy, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of Adding Facial Immersion to Chest-Level Water Immersion on Vagally-Mediated Heart Rate Variability.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Effects of focus training on heart rate variability in post-stroke fatigue patients.Journal of translational medicine · 2022Article
- Autonomic Function in Parkinson's Disease Subjects Across Repeated Short-Term Dry Immersion: Evidence From Linear and Non-linear HRV Parameters.Frontiers in physiology · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundChronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a central sensitisation syndrome with abnormalities in autonomic regulation of blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV). Prior to exploring the effects of hydrotherapy as a treatment for this population, changes in BP, HR and HRV during warm water immersion need to be established.
objectivesThe study aimed to determine the effects of warm water immersion on BP, HR and HRV in adults with CFS compared to matched-pair healthy adults.
methodA quasi-experimental, single-blinded study design was used with nine CFS participants and nine matched controls. Participants' BP, HR and HRV were measured before, after 5 minutes and post warm water immersion at the depth of the fourth intercostal space, using the Ithlete® System and Dräger BP monitor.
resultsThere was a significant difference between groups in HRV prior to immersion (control group: 73 [55-74] vs. chronic fatigue syndrome group: 63 [50-70];
conclusionPrior to immersion, differences were present in the HRV of the participants with CFS compared to healthy controls. These differences were no longer present post-immersion. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Warm water immersion appears safe and may be beneficial in the management of individuals with CFS.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.