Heat and fever therapies
The ancient Greeks used therapies to produce fever: the physicians of antiquity were in no doubt as to the healing properties of heat. Unfortunately, fever was later seen by modern medicine as a factor that needed to be eliminated because the body's natural healing response was viewed as an illness in itself. The healing power of raised body temperature was rediscovered in the 20th century and became the subject of scientific investigation. Nowadays, therapy involving various intensities of heat can produce astounding results.
One of the things we use at the Paracelsus Clinica al Ronc is a gentle infrared sauna. It is also safe for older people as there is no risk of it overloading the cardiovascular system. The infrared sauna is a gentle way of generating temperatures up to 55 degrees Celsius which support the body's natural ability to excrete toxic substances through the skin. Deep infrared heat also provides relief from soft-tissue rheumatism, and the infrared sauna is also indicated for early stages of circulatory disorders, respiratory diseases, immune deficiency and impairment of the hormonal system.
However, more severe cases of immune deficiency, chronic degenerative diseases, fibromyalgia and cancer require more intensive therapy with whole-body hyperthermia. This treatment involves the patient being exposed to an indirect light source, usually for several hours. There is no exposure to damaging ionizing radiation. The core temperature of the patient's body is raised, under continuous supervision, to 38.5, 39 or even 40 degrees, depending on the condition. The effects of this treatment on the body are complex and often surprising; painful conditions can suddenly improve; the immune system shows a high level of stimulation two days later, even if it has been "suppressed" for many years (with antibiotics, cortisone etc.). The patient recovers quickly from the fever, and there are no complications.
