The specific effect of balneotherapy by sulphated salt springs on a 51-year old man with limb contracture induced by limb burns was observed. He underwent a skin graft for two to three degree burns on 30% of his total body surface area involving limbs, and was admitted to Atagawa rehabilitation hospital after traumatism for two months. After he had balneotherapy (sulfated salt springs) for 15 minutes, he received 40 minutes of physical therapy four times a week as well as 40 minutes of occupational therapy four times a week. After treatment for three months, his contracture and daily living activities improved to a complete independence level, at which point he was discharged. He continued rehabilitation through the outpatient department, during which time his contracture worsened at one point before improving again.
 During his rehabilitation, a difference was recognized in the frequency and content of his rehabilitation during hospitalization compared to that in the outpatient department. He performed voluntary training mainly on range of motion exercises with a positive attitude throughout hospitalization, and the frequency and content of voluntary training did not change much after discharge, but balneotherapy ended with the discharge, so we presume that the improvement of the good range of motion limit during his time as an inpatient and the worsening of this after discharge was due to whether or not he was receiving balneotherapy.
 For the treatment of hypertrophic scars, a silicone gel sheeting has been used since the 1980s. Silicone gel sheeting is a safe and effective treatment for hypertrophic and keloid scars. Comparing the effects of treatment using silicone gel sheeting to those of treatment using sulphated salt springs shows there are common elements in terms of thermal insulation, moisture retention, action on fibroblast, and acceleration of collagenase activity and production. Therefore, it is expected that treatment using balneotherapy by sulphated salt springs has a similar effect as when treating hypertrophic scars with silicone gel sheeting and suggests why this led to improvement for this ailment. In addition, balneotherapy using sulphated salt springs is expected to provide the benefits of bathing in a sulphatedsalt springs in a convenient and easy manner for the entire body.
 The authors propose a new rehabilitation method using balneotherapy by sulphated salt springs to treat hypertrophic scaring.

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Purpose
 We assessed the effect of Electroacupuncture (EA) at Zusanli (ST36) acupoint on cardiac perfor-mance of spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR), analyzing left ventricular pressure-volume (PV) relationship.
Methods
 SHR and Wistar-Kyoto rat (WKY) were anesthetized with isoflurane (1%). Conductance catheter (SPR-838, Millar instruments, Houston, Texas) was inserted into left ventricle via carotid artery. Steady state was maintained for at least 5 min before EA was started.
 EA stimulation point was set on the right anterior side of hindlimb, corresponding to Zusanli (ST36) acupoint in humans. SHR and WKY underwent EA stimulation in a frequency of 2Hz and intensity of 6mA with a pulse generator (Han’s Healthronics Likon, Taipei, Taiwan) for 15 min. PV relationship was measured at baseline, 10min after the start of EA stimulation and at 0, 5, 10, 15 min after the end, then analyzed to obtain parameters for cardiac performance.
Result
 In the basic state before EA stimulation, ESP, SW, PVA, Ea, dp/dtmax, dp/dtmin, Pmax, ESPVR and EDPVR in SHR was significantly higher than those in WKY(ESP, 109.6±8.3 vs. 175.0±14.6mmHg, p<0.01 ; SW, 5.7±1.6 vs. 8.8±3.7mmHg·ml, p<0.05 ; PVA, 11.7±4.0 vs. 19.3±6.4mmHg· ml, p<0.01 ; Ea, 1804.2±382.4 vs. 2625.3±629.3 mmHg/ml, p<0.01 ; dp/dtmax, 7512.9±1628.8 vs. 13406.3±1771.4mmHg/s, p<0.01 ; dp/dtmin, -7159.7±1236.8 vs. -12082.5±1280.2 mmHg/s, p<0.01 ; Pmax, 116.7±6.8 vs. 176.8±14.6mmHg, p<0.01 ; ESPVR, 1013.8±320.3 vs. 1520.1±494.8mmHg/ml, p<0.05 ; EDPVR 70.0±39.3 vs. 178.3±130.2 mmHg/ml, p<0.05, respectively), indicating increased systolic function and decreased diastolic function in SHR.
 Significant change in parameters of WKY could not be observed after EA stimulation. In SHR, ESP, EDP, Ea, dp/dtmax, dp/dtmin, Pmax was significantly decreased at 10 min after EA started. ESPVR was not significantly affected by EA in both WKY and SHR, however, ESPVR tended to be increased in WKY and decreased in SHR at 10min after the start of EA stimulation.
Conclusion
 EA decreased indicators of systolic function in SHR that is significantly higher than WKY. This study suggests that EA improved enhanced systolic function in SHR, compared with WKY.

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 Whether it used in the climic in comparison with the prediction accuracy of electronic clinical thermometer was examined under the cooperation of the volunteer. There was the high correlation on predictive value and measured value with A c202, c220 types. The reproducibility by the iterative measurement by the equal clinical thermometer is high.
 Though the sensor is being set in the temperature sensing element metal cap of the clinical thermometer, the thermister has been minimized in order to improve the thermal reaction. It becomes an element in which this fact stimulates the short time measurement.
 The prediction accuracy lowers, and on the other hand the sensor is small, and it is difficult to be fixed at best warm division on arteria auxillaries. The artifact occurs, when the sensor is not rightly fixed, and it concludes easiness.

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 The purpose of this study was to clarify the change in symptoms, behavior, and feeling with acupuncture and the relationship between the changes and physical activity level in middle-aged and elderly people with musculoskeletal pain.
 The Subjects were 55 (26 males and 29 females, aged 65.0±12.2 years) middle-aged and elderly people with musculoskeletal pain who have been treated with acupuncture. We investigated the change in their symptoms, behavior, and feeling (symptoms, frequency of other treatments, exercise, frequency of going out and taking trips, general feeling, confidence in physical fitness, and coping with the prospects for the symptoms) with acupuncture using an unsigned self-administered question naire. In addition, the health-related quality-of-life was evaluated with SF-8 and the physical activity level was assessed with the Short Version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire.
 The subjects mostly recognized that their symptoms, behavior, and feeling had a tendency to improve or remain unchanged with acupuncture. Evaluation of the relationship between the changes with acupuncture and walking physical activity showed that the subjects who felt their frequency of exercise or of going out or taking trips tended to increase with acupuncture treatment showed a significantly higher physical activity level than those who stated there was no change or a decreasing tendency (p<0.05). Similarly, the subjects whose assessment for the general feeling or coping with the prospects for symptoms was a tendency to irnprove with acupuncture showed a significantly higher physical activity level than those whose assessment was no change or deleterious change (p<0.05).
 These results indicate that acupuncture might have a positive affect on their symptoms, behavior, and feeling, and also provide opportunities to increase walking physical activity in middle-aged and elderly people with skeletai and muscular disorders.

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Purpose
 This study aimed to clarify the effects of footbath (FB) on motor functions (MFs).
Subjects
 The study population comprised 26 healthy volunteers (12 males and 14 females; age, 21-30years, Standard Deviation,25.5±2.8).
Method
 (1) Study design: The footbath group (FBG; 6 males, 8 females) received FB at 42°C for 20 min after 5-min rest. The control group (CG; 6 males, 6 females) was instructed to sit on the chair for 20 min after 5-min rest. (2) Evaluation of MFs: MF was evaluated using the following parameters: long sitting reach (LSR), grips (GP), quadriceps power, stick reaction, and functional reach (FR). MF was evaluated before the rest period (pre-MF) and after load application (post-MF). The results obtained from pre-MF and post-MF assessments were compared. (3) Measurement of tympanic membrane temperature (TM temp) : TM temp was measured every 1 min duimg load application and after the rest period.
Result
 TM temp: Significant increase in the TM temp in the FBG was observed at 18 min in the males and at 20 min in females.
 MF before and after FB: (1) Analysis of all 26 cases: There was no significant difference betweenthe pre-MF and post-MF parameters in both the FBG and CG. (2) Analysis of the findings in males only: The post-FR value in the FBG increased significantly as compared to the pre-FR value, although there was no significant difference between the pre-MF and post-MF results in the CG. (3)Analysis of the findings in females only: In the FBG, post-LSR value increased and the post-GP value decreased significantly as compared to the corresponding values, although there was no significant difference between the pre-MF and post-MF in the CG.
Conclusion
 Our results suggest that FB improves MF in healthy volunteers. Gender ditiference should be considered while establishing effective FB treatment programs in Balneology.

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 Physiological changes induced by the localized bathing of hands, feet, and simultaneous hand-foot baths were studied and compared with each other in order to elucidate the physiological mechanism of hand and foot baths. Fifteen healthy adult males (32±10years old) took hand, foot, and simultaneous hand-foot carbonated (module mixture type artificial carbonated bath, at a CO₂, concentration of 1,100±100 ppm, pH 4.8) and freshwater baths (pH 7.4) at 38°C, and assumed a control sitting position following a randomized controlled design. They took 7 kinds of localized baths mentioned above at 1-week intervals. Each localized bathing session involved a 5-minute rest in a sitting position, the 30-minute bathing, followed by a 10-minute rest. Subjects’physiological parameters, such as the heart rate, blood pressure, near infrared spectroscopy of the forehead, laser Doppler flowmetric findings for immersed (foot) and non-immersed (shoulder muscle) body surface capillary fiow, as well as the body temperature of sublingual and tympanic membranes were monitored.
 While no physiological changes occurred during the proximal 5-10 minutes after starting simultaneous hand-foot baths, the body temperature, cerebral tissue circulation, cutaneous blood flow of the non-bathed skin, and heart rate increased and the diastolic pressure decreased in the distal half of 30-minute carbonated and freshwater baths. These physiological changes would probably be due to the thermal effect.
 However, the proximal 5-10 minutes after staning hand and foot carbonated baths showed opposite autonomic changes, which disappeared in the simultaneous hand-foot carbonated baths. Freshwater localized hand and foot baths did not lead to such differences. The cutaneous blood flow of bathed skin of the hands and feet was also significantly different only in the carbonated baths, while no differences were obtained in the freshwater hand and foot baths.
 Taken together, 38 °C and 1,100 ppm carbonated localized baths (hands and feet) showed opposing heart rate variability just after staning bathing, and they induced different cutaneous blood flow changes during bathing. These physiological differences in hand and foot bathing may be due to somato-autonomic and axonal refiexes induced by skin nociceptive ion channels with different sensitivities and reactions due to the varying pH of the bathing medium, and due to different hydrostatic pressures of the hand and foot baths.

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