• Young-Hee Lee, Bit Na Ri Park, and Sung Hoon Kim.
• Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
• Yonsei Med. J. 2011 Nov 1; 52 (6): 982-9.

PurposeThe objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of heat and massage application on autonomic nervous system.Materials And MethodsOne hundred thirty-nine subjects volunteered and completed this study. Heat and massage was daily applied for 40 minutes, 5 days a week for 2 weeks. Primary-dependent measures included heart rate variability, sympathetic skin response, and serum cortisol and norepinephrine levels.ResultsSerum cortisol levels were significantly decreased at 2 weeks compared to baseline (p=0.003). Plasma norepinephrine levels at 4 weeks were significantly decreased compared to baseline (p=0.010). Heart rate, using the power spectra, increased significantly after 2 weeks compared to baseline. Of autonomic nerve conduction measures, latency was significantly increased at 2 and 4 weeks compared to baseline (p=0.023, 0.012), and amplitude was significantly decreased at 4 weeks compared to baseline (p=0.008). There were no serious adverse events such as burns or other major complications.ConclusionThe results of this study suggest that heat and massage applications provide relaxation to the autonomic nervous system without serious adverse events.

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